Tainted Wisdom
by The Last Princess of Hyrule
Summary: [FINISHED] Princess Zelda, captured by Ganondorf, at Link's hands. Now she must deal with the truth behind one of the greatest legends in Hyrule. Eternal peace was the only way out, but even in another world she cannot escape a fate worse than death.
1. Part One: The Tower of Darkness

**Disclaimer: **_The Legend of Zelda _is property of Nintendo and Shigeru Miyamoto, all rights reserved. I am in no way affiliated with these companies, or any legal proceedings concerning _The Legend of Zelda_. This story has been written purely out of enjoyment, and is not intended to make a profit, steal ideas, or offend anybody, though all original characters are my own property. Any similarities between my work and anyone else's is purely coincidental. "Loosing Grip" lyrics are property of Avril Lavigne, all rights reserved.

o

**_"Tainted Wisdom" - _Part One: The Tower of Darkness**

By The Last Princess of Hyrule

o

_**Are you aware of what you make me feel, baby?  
Right now I feel invisible to you,  
**__**Like I'm not real,  
Didn't you feel me lock my arms around you?  
Why'd you turn away . . .?**_

o

"And the other, the one who holds the Triforce of Wisdom . . . is the seventh Sage, who is destined to be the leader of them all . . ." I held up my right hand and the Triforce of Wisdom flared into life. "Yes . . . It is I, the Princess of Hyrule, Zelda."

Seven years, nearly half my life, spent hidden away within the body of a Sheikah man, as it was unsafe for a Princess of Hyrule to be seen in Ganondorf's realm. My only means of surviving that time of desolation had been to hide the true me and become the shadow man, Sheik.

Then, a few months ago, as I sat within this very Temple of Time, I witnessed something that relit the fires of hope in my heart. The Hero of Time had returned to Hyrule at last. After seven years, Link arrived once more in our land, only to find it in devastation since he had been sealed away. That was when I, still disguised as Sheik, told him what had happened and how to save Hyrule from this fate.

I don't know what did it, but something called him to strive to save my home and his. Throughout his quest, I was there to help him when he didn't know where to go. And now, with the power of the Sages awakened, we were finally ready to face Ganondorf, the King of Evil, and to free Hyrule from his tyranny.

I could feel Link staring at me as I gave him the Arrows of Light. I knew my sudden appearance had startled him, but surely the surprise should have worn off by now. That stare sent shivers up my spine; there was something not quite right about it.

"Are you ready?" I asked, breaking the awkward silence that had settled over us. He nodded. "Then let's go."

I turned toward the doors but, as I opened one, I knew he wasn't following. "Is something wrong?"

"You're coming with?" he asked.

o

**_Here's what I have to say,  
I was left to cry there,  
Waiting outside there,  
Burning with a lost stare,  
That's when I decided,  
__Why should I care . . . ?_**

o

"Yes," I answered. Why shouldn't I help him slay Ganondorf? "Why?"

"It might be dangerous," he said. From the tone of his voice, I couldn't tell whether he was being sincere or not.

"I know," I replied. "But, if you can do it, so can I."

"I'm sure you can," he told me. "But I want to know you're safe. What if you were to be hurt, and I couldn't help you?"

I threw my arms around his neck. "I can do this, I know I can," I felt him tense, but I ignored it. I tightened my grip, never wanting to let him go. I was so afraid that, if I let him walk out that door alone, I would never see him again.

I was still clinging to him when I heard a rumbling echo through the temple. I let go and swung around. The temple was shaking violently; so much so I feared it might crumble over our heads. I pressed my hand against a wall and felt the cool stone shudder. A moment too late, I realized what was happening.

I gasped. "That rumbling . . . it can't be?"

"What? What is it?" I heard Link yell behind me over the din, but I wasn't listening.

"No!" I tried to scream, but was cut off as I felt the air around me harden and solidify until I was trapped; encased in a giant rose-colored prism. I beat my gloved fists on the shining surface; but it did nothing save echo through the crystal. Through the walls, I saw Link looking wildly about him.

I could see him shouting, at me I assumed, but I couldn't hear a thing. The world had gone dead silent. Then, my ears pricked up as they took notice of the unmistakable voice that boomed into my consciousness. I could see Link's eyes filled with pure terror as he too heard, recognized, and remembered that dreadful sound.

"Princess Zelda . . . you foolish traitor!"

o

_**'Cuz you weren't there when I was scared,  
I was so alone,  
You, you need to listen,  
I'm starting to trip, I'm losing my grip,  
And I'm in this thing alone . . . **_

o

Ganondorf! I felt my legs begin to shake. I shivered violently. It had been seven years since I heard his voice, but even that amount of time couldn't make me forget him.

"I commend you for avoiding my pursuit for seven long years," he said, snidely. I could feel his presence though I knew I was alone. Link had stilled to listen, his hand on the hilt of the Master Sword. "But you let your guard down . . . I knew you'd appear if I let this kid wander around!"

I gasped and pressed hard against the crystal again. I threw all my weight into it but nothing happened. Link saw me struggling but did nothing, which confused me. He'd come all this way and he was going to give me up to Ganondorf without a fight?

I could hear Ganondorf chuckling. Could he see us? Most likely, I thought. This was probably just his idea of entertainment. "Well, hero. I see you decided to take me up on my little offer no doubt?"

Link's mouth moved as he shouted something at Ganondorf. I couldn't hear him but obviously Ganondorf could, because he responded by saying, "Collect? Collect what, hero?"

Collect? What were they talking about? I watched Link in confusion as he answered Ganondorf. "Deed?" Ganondorf asked. I could tell from his voice that his confusion was not sincere. "Oh yes, you want to collect the deed to the land I promised you in exchange for the princess. I must have forgotten."

I was utterly bewildered as I watched Link's expression grow increasingly more angry. It looked like Link snorted at that last remark before he spoke. "Of coarse I planned to give it to you. I always repay those loyal to me," said Ganondorf. It sounded to me as though he were trying to assure Link of something.

"With death? You view me as some sort of cold blooded tyrant, don't you, hero?" The King of Evil laughed, as Link grew more irritated. "No, you shall have the land your father once oversaw. Soon you will find yourself lord of those who reside there." I could not believe it; I had been sold out for the chance to rule over some piece of land.

Link looked somewhat pleased but his expression quickly turned to one of query. "There was more to our bargain?" Ganondorf asked, this time clearly confused. "Oh, of course, your little whore, Malon. What about her?"

"I promised her to you? Very well, she's yours. Anything else I've forgotten . ..?" There was a long pause as he thought about this. I held my breath, waiting in fear for what he might say. "Ah yes, the Triforce."

o

_**Am I just some chick you place beside you,  
**__**To take somebody's place?  
When you turn around can you recognize my face?  
You used to love me, you used to hug me,  
But that wasn't the case . . . **_

o

I covered my mouth in a gasp. "Yes, the Triforce of Courage, which you hold in your hand," Ganondorf said triumphantly. "You owe it to me."

I screamed at the top of my lungs, "No!" Link held up his right hand and shouted something at Ganondorf. His hand began to glow with a green light. I felt a stabbing pain in my own right hand as the Triforce of Wisdom reacted to Link. "Link, no!" I beat my fists on the crystal, the searing pain in my hand nearly blinding me, but to no avail. A bolt of light sliced cleanly through Link's wrist.

"Noooooo!"

Ganondorf laughed as Link grasped the bloody stump of his arm in agony; his severed hand melted away into a thick emerald mist. The pain in my hand dulled to a throb as I sank to my knees. The Triforce of Courage was now in the hands of the King of Evil. "I knew you weren't one to throw your life away on some princess." Ganondorf said. Link glared at the ceiling and called out.

"As you wish," Ganondorf answered. I looked up. It sounded as though Ganondorf were granting some request of his. But in return for what? The Triforce of Courage? Or me?

A bolt of white light shot down from the vaulted ceiling. It hit the ground, blinding me, as it took on a slightly feminine shape. As I blinked away bright violet spots, the glowing shape faded away to reveal a woman. She looked slightly familiar to me. She had bright mahogany red hair and pale blue eyes. Her white shirt was belted at the waist and tucked into a pink skirt with a brown apron in covering it. No doubt this must have been the girl, Malon, Ganondorf had spoken of before.

She looked about her wildly for a moment. I watched as Link called out to her. I saw how she whirled around at the sound of his voice. I noticed the looks on their faces as they ran to each other. And when she kissed him, I slammed the glass with my fists.

Ganondorf chuckled in the background, obviously entertained by the show before him. "Enjoy your whore, or wife, or whatever you call her." I closed my eyes against the tears as I felt my crystal prism rising above Link and his lover. It disappeared from the temple and I shook my head. The so-called, "Hero of Time" had sold out. How could I alone keep Hyrule safe from Ganondorf?

o

**_Everything wasn't okay,  
I was left to cry there, waiting outside there,  
Burning with a lost stare,  
That's when I decided,  
__Why should I care . . . ?_**

o

I slept though the assent to Ganon's Tower and for some time after I think. When I woke, I found I myself still in the crystal. But now it was inside a room; one unlike any I had ever seen before. The room was spacious and empty. The lofty, vaulted ceiling lattice above me was made with many stoat beams. My crystal hung at the ceiling, so I looked down at my feet and was able to get a bird's eye view.

The room had no walls it seemed; only windows. They were made from thousands of interlocking panes of stained glass. Each pane was a different shade of red, orange, or brown, and no two were alike. The beams that supported them were carved from a deep cherry colored wood. Every two beams had an iron grate torch fastened to them. The torches' low glow made the room seem darker and more foreboding than it would have were it day.

Right beneath me stood a giant organ. It was nearly as long and high as the wall it stood against. Thousands of brass pipes burst from it with a range of scales greater than anything I had ever seen before. There were three rows of keys at the base and a long bench sewn with a rich crimson cushion. The organ stood on a burgundy carpet decorated with hundreds of tiny intertwining stitches.

Directly across the room from the organ was a pair of double doors. They were carved with scenes of great battles won; battles from that night seven years ago, I presumed. The gold handles twisted like vines where they attached to the wood.

To the left of the door, in the middle of the wall was a fireplace. It had to be nearly fifteen feet wide and was made from dark gray slate. The floor it stood upon was a rare blood-red marble; fitting, for an evil king. In front of the fire were several high-backed chairs sewn with ruby-colored plush cushions. My gaze traveled up. Atop the mantle, I could see precious artifacts he had collected over the years.

The first three were the spiritual stones, which he must have stolen from the Temple of Time. Next to the stones was my father's crown. It was gold, crested with rubies, sapphires, emeralds, and a great diamond in the center. I had to shut my eyes for a moment as memories of him rushed back to me. It was too painful to remember him, or anything from my past life.

When I at last regained myself and looked back to the mantle, I was surprised to see my necklace next to his crown. The necklace was made from a star garnet with gold spikes around it. The gold chain also held the occasional barb before fastening in the back. Father had given that necklace to me for my tenth birthday; and he had died merely two months later.

The last thing on the mantle nearly made me sick. It was Link's right hand. It was shroud in a thick green mist through which I could see a slight glimmer of gold. The Triforce of Courage was rising out of his hand. I covered my mouth and turned away.

Beside the right wall stood a large four-poster canopy bed. The velvet hangings were scarlet colored, like blood. The bed had two thick feather mattresses heaped with heavy blankets. It was bedecked with multiple soft pillows.

I shifted uncomfortably, trying to get some feeling into my legs, which had fallen asleep beneath me. The bed looked terribly relaxing from here. I longed to stretch out on it, playing with the heavy tassels as I did when I was a child. I could almost hear Impa scolding me for jumping on my own soft bed. The pain of the memories was almost unbearable. I began to sob.

I was so immersed in my own sorrow I did not even notice my crystal descend to ground level. I didn't see the doors swing open to allow passage of some person or creature into the room. I was completely ignorant of the world around me, until I heard a cold voice call to me.

"Princess Zelda . . . so nice to see you again after so long."

o

_**'Cuz you weren't there when I was scared,  
**__**I was so alone,  
**__**You, you need to listen,  
**_**_I'm starting to trip, I'm losing my grip,  
__And I'm in this thing alone . . ._**

o

I looked up; Ganondorf had entered the room. He looked different since I last saw him. He wore the same dark armor, yes, but his crimson hair had lengthened and he wore a rich scarlet cape with a complex pattern of masterful stitches.

I pushed myself to my feet as the pink prism surrounding me vanished. He was smiling at me, pleased, apparently, that the last piece of the Triforce was within his grasp. I knew that was all he wanted. Or at least, I thought.

"It has been a long time, Princess," he said as he came toward me, slowly. "Seven years since I last saw you." I glared at him. "You were only a child then," he continued, folding his arms across his chest. "But now, look how you've grown; unrecognizable from the wretch you were seven years ago."

"You haven't changed at all," I said spitefully.

Ganondorf laughed. "No, Princess. I have changed more than you know."

He beckoned me to sit in one of the plush chairs by the fire but I refused, planting my feet into the floor. He shook his head and sat down. "Still uptight I see."

I narrowed my eyes and walked around to the front of the other chair. I seated myself rigidly in it, feeling the soft cushions as if they were knives.

We sat in silence for nearly a minute before he spoke again. "You know where you stand now, Princess. Your kingdom is lost, the Triforce of Courage is now in my grasp, and you no longer have a hero to protect you." He faced me. "Isn't it about time you gave in?"

"I may not have a kingdom to protect, nor a family to live for," I said to the fire. I then turned my head and looked him straight in the eyes. "But I will never give in to you."

Ganondorf snickered and stood up. He walked over to the mantle above the fire and rested and elbow on it. He stared down at the fire, its reflection flickering in his eyes. "I expected that," he muttered under his breath.

His eyes drifted up to the mantel, where they scanned through his trophies, as if searching for a certain one. I watched him warily, trying to anticipate what his next move would be.

"Only one thing missing," he said his eyes flickered to the Triforce of Courage. He placed two fingers on his right hand. The Triforce of Power sparked and glowed on it.

I felt a tingling in my right hand as the Triforce of Wisdom flashed into view. "Just as I thought," he said, staring at my gleaming hand, "You do hold the Triforce of Wisdom."

I stood up. There was something in his words; something in the way he said them that made my skin grow cold. He was looking at me again, flaming orange eyes shining in the firelight.

He took a step forward. I stepped back. "Scared, Princess?" he laughed, taking two more steps.

I felt my blood boil. Scared? After seven years of living in fear of discovery? Of watching my every move to keep myself safe? Of risking my life to help that so-called hero just so he could betray me! I know longer knew that kind of fear.

But the fear I felt now was different. No longer for my physical safety but on a darker scale. Fear of what might come next. I glared at Ganondorf, who had backed me into a corner near the massive organ.

He laughed again, almost maniacally. My torrid blood quickly turned to ice. His intentions were becoming clearer to me with each minute. My heart knew what was going to happen, but my mind willed it not to be true.

I could feel myself begin to shake and prayed he didn't notice. Ganondorf came closer until he was right in front of me. I could feel his breath on my face.

My fear welled up in my breast. There was no one here to protect me from him; no one to pull him away. But I couldn't give in so easily. I must be strong.

Then, I felt his hand grasp my chin. I tried to fight it but he forced me to look at him. "There is no one here, Princess. No one to save you from me." The expression I saw on his face was like none other I had ever seen before. A product of some kind of desire, but poisoned; turned from something pure to something vile. And whatever it was frightened me to my soul and I longed to scream aloud; to run from the room. But I was trapped.

I wrenched my chin from his grasp and I heard him laugh softly. Then I felt the back of his hand stroking my cheek. "Are you scared now?" he whispered in my ear. I couldn't stand it anymore. There had to be someone who would save me.

(_Help! Goddesses! Sages! Anyone! Help!_)

There came no reply. My body had seized up, and I stood rigid. Ganondorf laughed again, "Who did you think would help you, Princess? Your goddesses? The Sages? All lies."

I froze; Ganondorf could pick up my telepathy. "Didn't think I could hear you call out like that, did you?" Could he read all of my thoughts? I waited a moment, thinking at him about the Triforce. Nothing. So at least I was safe in my own head.

Then, I felt the fastenings on my gold chain hangings loosen. "No, they have no power." I became alert again as my decorations slid off my bare shoulders. My sleeveless magenta over shirt flopped lazily over my curving breasts and hips. The pale pink sleeveless shift seemed stiff; its high clasp and collar choking me.

His fingers traced the contours of my circlet before he pulled it out of my hair. "Only the darkness holds true power. Power imbued with the might of the Triforce." (_Nayru, my patron goddess, hear my pleas! Spare me!)_ I no longer cared if he heard my calls.

o

_**Open your eyes,  
Open up wide,  
Why should I care?  
'Cuz you weren't there when I was scared,  
I was so alone . . . **_

o

Then, miraculously, Ganondorf backed away, my trinkets in hand. He walked to his mantle and placed them lightly on its smooth surface. While he was busy, I backed warily out of the corner and sidestepped across the room. I kept my eyes locked onto his back.

I was halfway across the room when he turned around. As he spotted me, I jumped up and tried to back away, but the backs of my knees bumped something. I turned my head around and found that I had backed into the bed.

"You'll never give in, will you?" I heard footsteps and swiveled around to see Ganondorf advancing on me slowly. "If I cannot bend you to my will, than I shall be forced to break you."

There was no one here to protect me from him, but I was not going to give in. I would not be beaten by him! At least, that was what I told myself, repeating it in my mind like a mantra. But my body convulsed under his gaze. "What are you going to do to me?" I asked, voice dripping with fear.

"Whatever it takes."

That is when it happened. Before I knew it, he was on top of me. For a moment, I was frozen with surprise as we fell back onto the bed. Somewhere in the back of my mind, my consciousness was fighting to regain control of my petrified body. But terror gripped it tighter than dungeon chains.

I felt a hand on my back. At that instant, my conscious mind broke free and I screamed, physically, and mentally. (_Help!_ )

It felt as if I had been jolted from one nightmare into another. Suddenly I was fully aware of what was happening to me. His face was looming over mine, an evil glimmer in his eyes. A look that made me want to be sick.

There was no one to save me this time. But I was not going to let this happen. I would not give in! So, I slapped him; I bit his hand and balled up my fist, slamming it into his thick skull.

He lurched back with a slightly surprised look on his face. I propped myself up on the bed. My decorative hanging apron had been ripped off and tossed aside. My belt had been undone and my loose magenta over-shirt torn in places. My long, pale legs were exposed from under my loose white skirt. I was breathing heavily; my tangled hair drooped limply in my narrowed eyes.

As I looked at him, I expected to see anger in his expression, but rather he looked amused. As though this were all a game. "Going to try to fight me are you, Princess?" he asked with a laugh. "Still trying to win?"

Our eyes locked for a moment. It was in that instant that I could have sworn I saw a flash of fear cross his sharp features. But suddenly, whatever I saw was lost as he lunged at me. However, I was expecting him this time. I pulled my legs back and thrust them forward in a powerful kick, knocking him away again.

This time he did not look very amused. He seemed to be loosing his temper. "What does it take to show you you've lost?"

I was panting now, from trying to keep him away from me. As I caught my breath, I thought he looked as though he were going to give up. I relaxed, against my better judgment.

That was when he came at me again, catching me off guard. I tried feverishly to force him away once more. I tried to kick, bite, and scratch; whatever it took. But nothing worked.

I could hear my dress rip. I wanted to slap him, but he had pinned my arms above my head with one massive hand. Because I could no longer fight, I screamed, as loudly as I could. The most hateful of my thoughts poured out my mouth. But, of coarse, that didn't loosen his hold on me. I struggled futilely against the hand running across my body.

And then I felt it. Myself, my innocence, my very essence slipping away. A sensation unlike any I had ever felt before. A physical feeling; nothing to do with my mind. And I knew what it was. It was the result of lust, namely, his lust for me.

But I was not so untouched by the world that I had not heard wives stories about their husbands. Things I knew I should not have heard. Things about what went on in the bedroom after the door had been closed. I knew all about it.

But what I also had heard were the stories of romance. That this act in which I was taking place was a sacred one. One that would give me pleasure. And in some sick, twisted way, I felt what must be called pleasure. Some mental feeling accompanying this physical sensation.

Thousands of thoughts raced through my mind; fear, sadness, pain, longing, and even, though I shuddered to admit it, delight. My body had been violated; yet, here I was, enjoying it? What was wrong with me?

The events lasted hours into what I thought must have been night, but the light in the tower never changed. All I knew was that he eventually left me, at which time I cried myself to sleep.

o

_**Why should I care?  
'Cuz you weren't there when I was there,  
I was so alone . . . **_

o

Sometime later, I awoke. It took me a moment to recognize my surroundings. As the events of the previous day rushed back to me, I sat up in the large canopy bed. The crimson sheets were strewn about me in jumbled piles. Despite their dark colour, I could still make out the stains of blood distinctly marking them.

I stood and suddenly realized I was naked. Wrapping a sheet around me like a toga, I heaved a sigh. On a chair next to the bedside was a black robe with a silver tassel. Atop the seat of the chair was a slim silver dagger on a chain. Ganondorf had laid them there for me obviously.

I looked around the room but he was nowhere to be seen. Clearly, he was elsewhere, giving orders to his many minions, or probably coming up with some new plot to swindle me out of the Triforce of Wisdom.

Quickly I dressed, tying the tassel loosely around my waist and lashing the chain and dagger at my hip. Crossing my arms, I walked over to the fire, which was still burning as brightly as it had been the night before. My eyes scanned the mantle quickly. I picked up my father's crown. The precious stones set in it glittered in the firelight.

My eyes filled with angry tears. I looked away from the crown to the mantle. In the center of the treasures was a small figure of the Triforce, which I had not noticed before. It was made from pure gold and each piece of the relic was embedded with a different stone. A ruby for power, an emerald for courage, and a sapphire for wisdom. Now, both the ruby and the emerald were pulsing, which meant that Ganondorf had obtained those two pieces. Only the Triforce of Wisdom remained unlit, as I still held it in my hand.

I was tempted to knock the tiny thing right into the fire. Somehow, it symbolized defeat. Defeat . . . all because of Link. Just the thought of him made me want to scream. He deserted me; he hadn't been there when I was scared. He hadn't been there. In my fury, I threw my father's crown to the ground. It clanked and rolled to a halt at the foot of one of the windows.

I walked over to the intricate stained glass and rested my right hand on its cool surface. The Triforce mark had faded to a glimmer but I knew it was still there. Yet, somehow, despite everything, its burden on me seemed lighter than it had before last night.

Last night. I was so confused. I placed my other hand on the window, trying to peer through its clouded pigment. In a way, I felt violated, as I thought I should, for I knew I had been raped. But another part of me felt content. As though I had filled a void I hadn't even known existed until last night.

I balled up my fists and rested my forehead against the glass, my eyebrows knitted together in anguish. Content, satisfaction, pleasure. He—Ganondorf—my rival had made me feel pleasure. Just the thought of it made me want to be sick.

It must have been my imagination. I can't really have felt so . . . can I? I slammed my fists against the glass. My thoughts battled each other; for every point there was a counterpoint; every pro had a con. I could feel a dull throbbing ache in my lower regions. That was expectable. It had hurt and I knew it always hurt the first time, especially for the woman.

Suddenly, the doors behind me slammed. I whirled around to find Ganondorf standing before them. Uncontrollably, my heart skipped a beat. I slammed a hand to my chest, hoping to slow its racing pulse. I didn't know what it was, but somehow, the void—which I deemed as my own lust— felt hollow. My longing swelled up, against the disgust my mind felt at the sight of his face.

"You are awake at last, are you?" he asked, seating himself in one of the chairs. He looked at the crown by the fire but made no move to pick it up. Ganondorf looked back at me and beckoned me to sit. Feeling somehow more relaxed in his presence today than I had yesterday, I sat. His eyes were locked on my face, and I could feel myself blush. Oh goddesses, I was embarrassed by the way he looked at me.

"You really are beautiful," he said, as though realizing it for the very first time. "How did that hero ever bring himself do abandon you?"

"Obviously, whatever you offered him was worth more than me," I said without feeling.

"The farm girl," Ganondorf whispered, "The whore."

I nodded. "He's obviously in love with her. And I, saw them, together once," I shifted uncomfortably; feeling his gaze on my face. "They were in the bedroom in the house . . . I had gone to borrow a horse, but there was no one in the stables. So I went into the farmhouse to look for someone. There was no one downstairs, but I could hear voices coming from behind the door, and . . ." I sobbed, "And the distinct sound of bedsprings . . .!" My voice quavered and ended on a high pitch. I his my face in my hand and turned away from him; I wouldn't let my enemy see me cry.

Ganondorf, however, made no reply. He stood and walked over to the fire and rested his arm on the mantle like the night before. "You love him, don't you, Zelda?"

I looked up at him; I had never heard him call me by my name before. It was always 'wretch' or 'Princess'. Never Zelda. My heart thumped loudly again.

I couldn't admit to Ganondorf that I loved Link. But when I looked in his eyes, I saw not the fire I had seen last night, but compassion. Real, pure compassion. "I did," I managed to answer. Tears filled my eyes again and I turned from him.

A hand lightly rested on my shoulder. I started and looked up at him. "I am sorry," he whispered. Somehow my hand found his and I clasped it tightly. Gently, he pulled me to my feet. My skin felt warm.

I looked up at him and before I knew what I was doing, I kissed him. My mind was screaming that it was foul but it wasn't. Being kissed when you want to be is pleasant.

Not to my surprise, he kissed me back. I pressed my mouth against his hungrily, wanting more and more. He opened his mouth, which I allowed, my right hand clutching the back of his neck, as he was so much taller than I.

It was on the combined impulses of both that we managed to find the bed again. He fell on top of me, but I didn't mind. The ecstasy from the previous night, which had died down, was suddenly reawakened in me with a surge of longing. "Oh, Zelda . . ."

I could feel him undo the clasp on my tassel, but ignored it. It felt so wonderful, to be with a man. Oh, such pleasure must never have been known before now. I couldn't get enough, loving every minute.

Somewhere in the back of my mind, my old conscious yelled at the wrongness of this act, and with him most of all, but I ignored it. My body swelled as I felt that pleasant, glorious feeling from last night. So wonderful, so great. I never wanted it to end.

o

_**Why should I care?  
If you don't care then I don't care,  
We're not going anywhere . . .**_

o

I awoke again to find myself alone once more. Ganondorf obviously wasn't much of a sleeper but I supposed that must come from practice. Oh, it was such a glorious day, even up in that drafty tower. I pulled my robe on again and walked around the room.

I felt so good. My body had been satisfied, physically and mentally. I finally allowed myself to admit that I had felt pleasure, even from Ganondorf, and I enjoyed it. But a tiny voice in the back of my mind continuously got the better of me as it whispered, "But you are still scared, aren't you, Zelda?" it sneered at me. "Scared he has played you false; put on this show of loving you only to trick you into giving him the Triforce." Try as I might, I could not silence it.

I was loosing my sanity, I knew it. My burden had returned, stronger than before. The need I felt to protect my country and the Triforce. Then I would remember my satisfaction and wish with all my heart that things could have been different.

"Leave him," urged the voice in my head. Yes . . . I had to. He had stolen something from me I could never bring back. My innocence; my virginity. Even if I did manage to save Hyrule, I could never rule. I had been deflowered. No prince or king would ever wed a used princess. And I could not rule without a king.

But what if I let Ganondorf rule? Perhaps with my aid, I could sway him toward good . . . Perhaps if he had the whole Triforce, its righteousness would make his heart pure. "But you know it wouldn't," the voice said. "And because of that, your people be no better off than they are now?" But I did not know how to run a country, especially one as vast as Hyrule. Would it be any better off with me than with him?

No! I would not succumb to him! "I will not allow him control of the Triforce or my home!" I screamed to the voice. "I will beat him if it takes my life to do so!"

My life. Would I give my life for Hyrule . . . ? Yes. Yes, I would. "But that's what you were trained to think," the little voice laughed, "What do _you_ want?"

o

_**Crying out loud,  
I'm crying out loud,  
Crying out loud,  
I'm crying out loud . . .**_

o

What did_I_ want? All I had wanted from the beginning was a legacy. That was why I had tried to gain control of the Triforce when I was a little girl. Not because I wanted to keep it from Ganondorf but because I wanted to be remembered. When I died, I wanted people always to remember Zelda, the princess of Hyrule, who had mastered the Triforce and brought about Hyrule's golden age.

"Will they remember you?" laughed the little voice. "And if they do, why should you care?"

Why should I care? The question struck me. Why _should_ I care? What should it matter to me what happens to Hyrule? That was just it; it shouldn't matter. Hyrule cared not for me when I was forced from the castle seven years ago. They didn't try to restore me to the throne. They don't care, so why should I?

I looked back at the fire and the crown, which still lie on the floor. I picked it up and traced its contours with my index finger before throwing it into the fire. Perhaps the voice was right. Ganondorf was pure evil; capable of showing love, when it fit his desires, but unable to feel it. I had been tricked into thinking he cared about me, which in time he hoped, would lead to my willing surrender of the Triforce of Wisdom into his grasp.

Perhaps it was time to rejoin my mother and father.

I kicked the mosaic window nest to the fire, shattering the glass. I leaned out and watched the wire frame as it ricocheted off the tower walls into the pit of lava far below. Strong winds rushed past me, threatening to pull me from the room.

The Triforce on my hand must have sensed my purpose for it burned me. For a moment, I considered forfeiting the Triforce to Ganondorf, as the little voice advised. But this time, I would think for myself. I drew the silver dagger. It flashed in the firelight as I screamed in pain.

Blood poured from my pitiful stump as I dropped the dagger and looked at my decapitated right hand. It lay on the tiled floor, shroud already in thick blue mist. I picked it up and glared at it. If I couldn't have the whole Triforce, no one could. I threw my hand, with the Triforce of Wisdom emerging from it, into the pit of fire.

I stepped out of the window and poised myself carefully on its frame. I looked up at the sky and sent up a prayer. (_Nayru, my patron goddess; Mother, Father . . . forgive me._) When I felt the burn of the molten rock on my skin, I was at last truly at peace.

o

_**Why should I care?  
**__**'Cuz you weren't there when I was scared,  
**__**I was so alone,  
**__**Why should I care?  
**_**_If you don't care then I don't care,  
__We're not going anywhere . . ._**

o

**Serious Note**: Rape is not a thing to be taken lightly. It's also not something to be viewed as surreal. Rape is in our society and, as you sit here and read this, some poor victim is being robbed of something more precious than money. Take it from me. It doesn't seem real until it hits home. If you know a friend or family member or even someone you hardly talk to that has been raped, don't sit by and do nothing. They can't fight this by themselves, no matter how strong they seem on the outside. Take the time to talk to them and find help for them. Be supportive. Stay by their side and someday, they may thank you for it. Keep them from doing something drastic. And as for the sick bastard who committed this crime against the victim, if you know anything about them, call your local police immediately. With your help, they can put that person behind bars; to serve a sentence as severe as the crime if called for. Bring rapists to justice. Call or go online. It's never too late to help someone.


	2. Part Two: Black Memories

**Disclaimer:** _The Legend of Zelda _is property of Nintendo and Shigeru Miyamoto, all rights reserved. I am in no way affiliated with these companies, or any legal proceedings concerning _The Legend of Zelda_. This story has been written purely out of enjoyment, and is not intended to make a profit, steal ideas, or offend anybody, though all original characters are my own property. Any similarities between my work and anyone else's is purely coincidental. "Everybody's Fool" lyrics are property ofEvanescence, all rights reserved.

o

**_"Tainted Wisdom" - _Part Two: Black Memories**

By The Last Princess of Hyrule

o

**_Perfect by nature,  
__Icons of self indulgence . . ._**

o

_"Ashuulte amunsas trécascalyá musctraa!"_

I had no idea what was happening. At first, my body felt consumed by heat, my flesh blistering all over and full of pain. It took me almost a minute to realize there was no fire and nothing burning. Slowly, I opened my eyes.

I found myself staring up at the sky, or at least, I thought it was the sky. But it was overcast with mean gray clouds spiraling toward a point somewhere toward my left. I looked an saw a tall stone spire, jagged and black, piercing the sky. The spire stood at the tip of a great tower of the same likeness. And then my memory returned.

I screamed when the images came, flashes at first, only a quick look at what had happened, but what I didn't want to remember. The second time it was more thorough and I saw the whole event played back for me like someone watches a video, the sense I got from seeing this made it all feel both real and surreal at the same time.

I sat up and reached one hand out in front of me, examining it. Several of my fingers were wrapped in little strips of white cloth, as was my wrist and most of my lower arm. My other hand looked the same way. I had two hands! I did a double take and looked a them again. Yes, two hands, one left, one right. They even worked, I discovered, clenching and loosening each in turn. Suddenly I reached up and touched my face, only to feel a linen cloth covering my mouth, and another wrapped around my head.

I looked down at my hands again, trying to understand what was happening. Unfortunately, they would give me no answers.

Slowly and quite unsteadily, I managed to stand. My ankles wobbled and I held out my hands. It took some time, but I managed to stand without tilting forward. That was when I heard the voice behind me.

"It actually worked . . . you _are _alive!"

I whirled around, half falling forward with my hands out. A dark and mysterious man stood confidently before me, a tall black staff clutched in his hands. He was dressed in a midnight leather jerking with dark leggings and tall black boots. Over his shoulders was a long, split cloak, dyed a rich dark color and embroidered with tiny orange flames at the hem.

I tried to ask him who he was, but my voice cracked. The man smiled and took a step closer. "Amazing . . ." he said to himself.

I cleared my throat. "W-who . . . are y-you?" I managed to say.

"You can speak to." He sounded impressed by such a little thing. I felt offended. "I am Taekorra. Do you know who you are?"

"I'm . . ." I looked down at my hands. "I'm Sheik."

His smile widened. "You're also the Princess Zelda, correct?"

o

**_Just what we all need,  
__More lies about a world that . . ._**

o

My red eyes narrowed. Taekorra laughed. "Don't be so uppity, princess, I don't plan to tell anyone."

I crossed my arms. Surprisingly, movement did not threaten to unbalance me. "What do you want with me?"

"The same thing everybody wants, princess."

"Stop calling me that."

He bowed. "As you wish, my lady."

"Drop the charade," I demanded. "Not everyone wants the same thing from me. What do _you_ want?"

"If you must know," he sighed. "I need your help."

"Well—what?" I could hardly grasp what he was saying. "My _help_?"

Taekorra's expression grew serious. "Is that so hard to grasp?"

I looked at him defiantly. "Perhaps. What do you need me for?"

He looked around nervously. "This isn't the place for us to talk. There are spies of my master everywhere, and I don't think he'll be too happy that I brought you back to life without his consent."

My eyes widened. "You work for Ganondorf?" I took a step back.

"I work for no one."

I backed away until I lifted my foot and found only air to set it down on. I looked back and found myself on the edge of the land, looking over a familiar pit of fiery molten rock. Taekorra followed me slowly.

"Princess, please. Don't do anything rash."

"Stop calling me that!" I shouted. I turned and leapt from the land.

At least, I thought I'd leapt. In reality, something grabbed me around the waist and pulled me back. I was thrown roughly to the ground, at which time I opened my eyes and looked up at Taekorra.

"That's the second time you've stopped me from eternal peace," I said.

"You have use to me and I won't let you die until I've gotten what I want."

My heart skipped a beat as I remembered another time I'd heard someone say that. I began to shake, my idiotic memory reminding me. _'"What are you going to do to me?" I asked, voice dripping with fear. "Whatever it takes."' _I shuddered, those three words playing again and again. _'"Whatever it takes.""Whatever it takes.""Whatever it takes.""Whatever it takes."'_

"Sheik?"

I gasped and jumped up, eyes suddenly focusing on Taekorra's face. He looked concerned for a second, but when he realized I was staring at him, concealed the emotion.

"What happened?" he asked. "You looked like you were about to faint."

I stood and pushed him away. "It's nothing. Let's just get away from here."

o

_**Never was and never will be,  
**_**_Have you no shame don't you see me?  
__You know you've got everybody fooled . . ._**

o

He led me out of the ruined town of Hyrule silently. Outside the battered wall, a brown horse waited. We mounted it and rode south. The sun had set and, though I knew my country almost perfectly, I had no idea where we were going.

At some time in the journey, I fell asleep for a few hours, head lolling on his shoulder. He didn't seem to notice, absorbed in his own thoughts.

Anyone knows that the purpose of sleep is to relax, but that was exactly the opposite my sleep brought me. Memories beat my mind one after another._'Then, I felt his hand grasp my chin. I tried to fight it but he forced me to look at him. "There is no one here, Princess. No one to save you from me." The expression I saw on his face was like none other I had ever seen before. A product of some kind of desire, but poisoned; turned from something pure to something vile. And whatever it was frightened me to my soul and I longed to scream aloud; to run from the room. But I was trapped.'_

_'That is when it happened. Before I knew it, he was on top of me. For a moment, I was frozen with surprise as we fell back onto the bed. Somewhere in the back of my mind, my consciousness was fighting to regain control of my petrified body. But terror gripped it tighter than dungeon chains. I felt a hand on my back. At that instant, my conscious mind broke free and I screamed, physically, and mentally. ( Help! )'_

"Help! Help!"

"Sheik! Wake up!"

A splash of icy water hit my face, forcing me with a jolt into wakefulness. "Help!" I screamed again, sitting up quickly. Suddenly, I realized I was somewhere other than what I thought. I was lying in the grass on my back, head in a puddle of mud from the water. Taekorra was kneeling next to me, face filled with worry. This time, he didn't try to hide it when I looked at him.

"You're all right now, right?"

I drew in a shaking breath. The dream was still vivid in my mind. "I . . ."

He sat down in the grass beside me. Above us, the sky was clear, glittering with thousands of diamond stars. "Were you having a nightmare?"

I nodded.

"What was it about?"

I looked away.

"Well?"

My body began to shake and I remained silent.

"My goddesses, Sheik, tell my what's wrong!"

"Don't yell at me!"

Taekorra was struck silent. "I just want to help," he whispered under his breath as he stood. "Well, now's as good a time as any to make camp."

I turned onto my side away from him, ignoring the words. Against my will, I fell asleep again. _'It felt as if I had been jolted from one nightmare into another. Suddenly I was fully aware of what was happening to me. His face was looming over mine, an evil glimmer in his eyes. A look that made me want to be sick. _

_'I could hear my dress rip. I wanted to slap him, but he had pinned my arms above my head with one massive hand. Because I could no longer fight, I screamed, as loudly as I could. The most hateful of my thoughts poured out my mouth. But, of coarse, that didn't loosen his hold on me. I struggled futilely against the hand running across my body.'_

"Nayru help me!" I screamed and sat up. It was still night and I was still lying in the middle of a vast empty field. At my feet was a smoldering fire pit, the dead ashes pale in the dim starlight. Taekorra was nowhere to be seen.

I began to shake again, fear pulling at my heart and whatever was left of my torn soul. There had been a reason I'd thrown myself out of the tower; to escape this. Was it my fault some fool had brought my out of that rest for his own devices?

And speaking of such, what _were _his intentions toward me? At times, Taekorra acted like he really cared about me, and then he was cold and unfeeling again. I tucked my knees under my chin and wrapped my arms around them. Would Taekorra try to steal from me what Ganondorf already claimed?

My ruby eyes filled with tears and I wept silently.

o

_**Look here she comes now,  
**_**_Bow down and stare in wonder,  
__Oh, how we love you . . ._**

o

I didn't sleep anymore that night. Instead, I stared at the cold fire pit until the sun began to rise, washing the sky overhead in a dead pinkish color, product of smoke from some or other burning village.

I heard the pounding of horse's hooves behind me and turned around. Taekorra, on his chocolate mare, rode over a hill into the camp. He dismounted, eyeing me suspiciously. "Have you been up long?"

I lied, shaking my head. Taekorra didn't seem to care.

"Well, hurry up and eat something." He flung a leather saddlebag at me. "We need to leave as soon as possible."

"Where are we going?" I asked.

"Somewhere." With that, he vaulted onto the horse's back and rode off, opposite the way he came.

"Whatever," I said doubtfully to myself as I lifted the flap and looked into the bag. Inside was a loaf of hard bread, some dried strips of meat, and flask of water. I broke off a hunk of bread and chewed it slowly.

Taekorra returned just as the sky was turning from yellow to daytime blue. "Where have you been?" I asked sourly, closing the bag.

"Somewhere."

"The same 'somewhere' we're going to today?" I pulled myself up behind him.

"No." His eyes scanned the camp, checking my work. I had done a very good job making sure it looked like we had never been there. I spread the ashes over the ground and threw the pit rocks as hard as I could in every direction. Without a word, he spurred the horse around and galloped away.

We rode in silence again. Though I was exhausted from staying up all night, I didn't dare close my eyes longer than to blink. Eventually, after hours of riding, I felt us slow. I looked around.

In front of us was a cluster of buildings, consisting of a large barn, farmhouse, and storage shed. Out behind the house was a large fenced paddock, several horses galloping around it. I shuddered; I remembered this ranch.

"We're here," Taekorra stated, dismounting. I made no move to do so.

"_This_ is it?" I asked skeptically. "_This_ is where you've wanted to bring me all along?"

"Is there something wrong with that?" He looked back at me.

"What are we doing _here_?"

"Something." He motioned me to get down.

I stayed put. "What are we doing here?" I repeated impatiently.

"You'll see." He walked up to me and grabbed me around the waist, yanking me off the horse's back. I fell to the ground with a thud.

"I think I'll wait right here," I said, heaving myself to my feet and brushing the dust from my stomach.

"I don't think so." Taekorra grabbed my wrist and dragged me over to the farmhouse. "This is what I needed you for. Go knock on the door." He stopped and shoved me toward it. I stumbled to a stop.

"What?" I asked in disbelief.

"Knock on the door," he repeated, crossing his arms impatiently. "Ask for the master of the house."

"Oh no, I am _not _going anywhere near him." I tried to walk away, but Taekorra blocked my path.

"Do it now, princess," he said in a warning tone, "or you might find yourself back in the hands of my master."

The terrifying memories leapt to mind. Frightened, I shook them away and glared at the smug sorcerer. "Very well."

I walked back to the door and, with a shaking hand, pounded my fist hard against the wood.

o

**_No flaws when you're pretending,  
__But now I know she . . ._**

o

To my intense disappointment, the door opened. In its wake stood a young woman with long mahogany hair and blue eyes, dressed in a simple pale blue dress. Around her waist was a smudged apron and her skin was smeared with flour. I remembered her perfectly, though I disdained the sight of her.

She looked at me in confusion, and in the back of her features I could see she was slightly appalled by me. "Can I help you?" she asked in her sing-song sweet voice.

"Y-yes." I tried to keep my voice from shaking. "I'm looking for Link."

"Link?" she repeated. "Who are you?"

"No one of any direct consequence," I answered tartly. "Could you please get him?"

She examined me again, skepticism filling her features. "Do I know you from somewhere?"

"No," I replied. "Now, would you please . . .?" My tone was more insistent.

"Certainly." She ducked back into the house. The moment the door closed I turned back to Taekorra with a look of dire desperation on my face. He was just as stern as before. Get me out of here, I mouthed to him.

No, he replied. You're doing fine.

I was just about to protest when the door creaked and opened again. I whirled around and found myself face to face with the one of the last people in Hyrule that I wanted to see.

Link didn't look much different since last we met, which further enhanced my belief that I hadn't been dead for very long. He was dressed in brown slacks with a loose white shirt and leather vest. His blonde hair was tied behind his head in a short ponytail. On his face was a look of intense surprise.

He stared at me for a long moment. I crossed my arms impatiently. "Well?" I asked. "Are you going to say anything?"

The surprise was replaced by a look of irritation. "What are you doing here?"

"I've been asking myself the same thing for the past ten minutes," I said. "Come outside. There's someone who wants to talk to you."

He walked out slowly and I heard Taekorra come up behind us. In my mind, I heaved a relieved sigh as the sorcerer joined the group.

"Nice to see you, hero," he said with a smile. "Would you come walk with me?"

Link said nothing, but followed Taekorra off. I took the chance and crept silently away. Perhaps I could steal a horse while they were occupied with each other and get away from all this. However, Taekorra was step ahead of me. "Sheik, would you join us?"

I groaned and turned around, following silently. Taekorra walked slowly. "Lovely day, isn't it?"

Link crossed his arms. "Cut the act, whoever you are, and tell me what you want with me."

o

_**Never was and never will be,  
**_**_You don't know how you've betrayed be,  
__And somehow you've got everybody fooled . . ._**

o

Taekorra stopped and eyed the hero. "Quick tempered, are we? Very well." He sighed. "You're aware that the King of Evil holds two pieces of the Triforce now, correct?"

Link glared at him. "I'm reminded of it every day."

Taekorra didn't ask how. Somehow, he knew as well as I did how Ganondorf gained the Triforce of Courage. "Well, the third piece, the Triforce of Wisdom, has disappeared."

"What are you talking about? It's standing right in front of you." He gestured at me with his good left hand.

"Actually, no," Taekorra corrected. "The princess lost it not long after you and no one knows what happened." He jabbed his thumb at me. "It didn't even return when I revived her."

"'Revived her'?" Link repeated, finally taking interest in the conversation.

"Hero, she killed herself a month ago." Taekorra said it as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

Link looked from Taekorra, to me, to Taekorra again, but didn't comment, though I knew what he was thinking. _(I am _not _in love with this fool of a sorcerer,) _I spoke telepathically to him, as I once had, but Link showed no sign of hearing my send. What a surprise.

"What does all this have to do with me?" he demanded.

"I'm getting to it. Do step out of character for a moment and try to be patient." Link narrowed his eyes, but Taekorra was undaunted. "Now, this probably won't surprise you, but I am seeking the Triforce, like every other poor fool in this world. But, in order to get it, I first need the Triforce of Wisdom. That Triforce will make the others come to it without any conflict."

"If it could do that, why didn't Zelda try that in the first place?"

"Zelda didn't know the whole legend," Taekorra replied, a wicked glimmer in his eyes. "The Triforce of Wisdom holds the essence of the goddess Nayru inside. Nayru created the order and law of the world. Do you know the answer yet?"

"If I did, would I be asking you?" Link was becoming annoyed. "Get on with it!"

Taekorra smiled. "The Triforce of Wisdom can tap into Her power and create any law its holder wants. All the holder has to do is ask it to create a force of attraction between itself and the other two pieces. They will be unable to refuse to answer the call of the Triforce of Wisdom."

Link didn't look impressed. I wasn't surprised. "That's all well and good," he said, "but I still don't see what you want me for."

"In order for this to work, I need the Triforce of Wisdom. The Triforce of Wisdom is lost right now, but in a different time, it's waiting in the Sacred Realm." Taekorra's expression turned serious. "You're the Hero of Time. With that power, you can travel to any time you want. I want you to take you, myself, and Sheik back twenty years, to the time before the Great War, when the Sacred Realm was unguarded."

"Why should I do this?" he asked.

"Well, since the princess's tragic death, my master has had in mind the idea of a wife, and he's had his eye on yours for some time now. It would be terrible for you if she suddenly were taken away, wouldn't it?"

Link was silent.

"Then I suggest you cooperate." Taekorra's cheerful mood appeared again. "Good. Now go tell the little lady that you're leaving. Don't tell her anything else. Meet us outside the house in ten minutes."

o

**_Without the mask,  
__Where will you hide . . .?_**

o

Ten minutes later, Link emerged from the farmhouse, trailed by Malon, who pestered him with worried questions. "Why won't you tell me what's going on?" she was asking as they came out.

"I would if I could," he said sweetly.

"At least tell me how long you'll be gone," she insisted.

"I don't know."

"Then I'm coming with."

I shook my head vigorously. Did the farm girl really just say she was coming?

"Malon . . ." Link started. Malon put her hands on her hips.

"I'm coming and there's nothing you can do to stop me."

Link looked unsure for a moment. _Please make her stay. Please make her stay. Please make her stay. _I willed in my mind. However, he planted a kiss on her cheek and I knew there was no chance of that happening. I rolled my eyes. Taekorra covered his face, but he knew better than to argue. As long as Link came along, he would deal with whatever extra 'baggage' we had to bring.

I sighed and climbed onto Taekorra's brown mare. Link and Malon got on a chestnut mare with a white mane, Epona.

"Are you ready?" Taekorra turned around and looked at them. Link nodded. "Follow me."

He led us away from the ranch at a swift gallop north, the direction of the remains of the town of Hyrule. My grip around Taekorra's stomach tightened as the memories returned in vengeance. Luckily, my sleepless mind couldn't process them.

Night fell and we rode on, never ceasing the pace Taekorra set. The sky was as black as it could possibly be, for no stars shed their light. Despite my stern resolve not to sleep, I kept nodding off, then jerking awake again. Finally, my movements began to get the best of Taekorra's patience.

"Sheik, would you settle down?" he called to me. "What are you doing back there?"

"Nothing."

"Go to sleep," he said. "It'll be a few more hours before we reach the temple and you look like you could use it."

"I'm fine."

"I'll make sure you don't fall off," he offered.

"No, that's all right."

Taekorra frowned. "Are you afraid of your nightmares?"

I said nothing.

"Well, the only way to get past that fear is to face them," he said, and before I knew what was happening, he forced me into sleep. "_Lsiipé!_"

o

**_Can't find yourself,  
__Lost in your lie . . ._**

o

The nightmare gripped me almost instantaneously. _'And then I felt it. Myself, my innocence, my very essence slipping away. A sensation unlike any I had ever felt before. A physical feeling; nothing to do with my mind. And I knew what it was. It was the result of lust, namely, his lust for me. But I was not so untouched by the world that I had not heard wives stories about their husbands. Things I knew I should not have heard. Things about what went on in the bedroom after the door had been closed. I knew all about it. But what I also had heard were the stories of romance. That this act in which I was taking place was a sacred one. One that would give me pleasure. And in some sick, twisted way, I felt what must be called pleasure. Some mental feeling accompanying this physical sensation._

_'Thousands of thoughts raced through my mind; fear, sadness, pain, longing, and even, though I shuddered to admit it, delight. My body had been violated; yet, here I was, enjoying it? What was wrong with me? The events lasted hours into what I thought must have been night, but the light in the tower never changed. All I knew was that he eventually left me, at which time I cried myself to sleep._

_'Sometime later, I awoke. The crimson sheets were strewn about me in jumbled piles. Despite their dark colour, I could still make out the stains of blood distinctly marking them. My eyes filled with angry tears. Last night. I was so confused. In a way, I felt violated, as I thought I should, for I knew I had been raped. But another part of me felt content. As though I had filled a void I hadn't even known existed until last night. Content, satisfaction, _pleasure_. He—Ganondorf—my rival had made me feel pleasure. Just the thought of it made me want to be sick._

_'It must have been my imagination. I can't really have felt so . . . can I? But, what most was in my mind was the knowledge of defeat. Defeat . . . all because of Link. Just the thought of him made me want to scream. He deserted me; he hadn't been there when I was scared. I screamed.'_

And screamed. And screamed. I screamed myself through the bindings of the spell and was awake. Taekorra had halted the horse and looked back at me full of worry. "My goddesses, Sheik, what _is_ it you dream!"

My body convulsed under his eyes. The vision of Taekorra blurred and when it came back into view, it was Ganondorf who stood over me. The leering smile on his face was clear, as it had been that night in the tower. This was real.

"Damn you, Taekorra!" I shouted. "I should have known you'd betray me! Goddesses damn whatever soul you posses to hell and back!"

"Zelda. . . ." my rival whispered. "Remember?"

"No! Damn you!"

"Remember. . . ."

"I hate you! Get the hell away from me!"

"Zelda. . . ."

"Damn you!"

"Zelda."

"Never!"

"Zelda!"

"No!" I screamed and slammed a fist into Ganondorf's horrible face, only to see him disappear and Taekorra stumble away, clutching his left eye.

o

_**I know the truth now,  
**_**_I know who you are,  
__And I don't love you anymore . . ._**

o

"Taekorra!" I jumped to my feet, but he didn't need my help. The sorcerer uncovered his eye and stood confidently before me.

"Zelda."

He said my name again.

"Tell me the truth." He looked into my eyes, concern and seriousness filling his voice. "What happened to you?"

I glanced at where Link and Malon had stopped. They watched me expectantly. I turned back to Taekorra, and found solace in his caring gaze. "I . . . I . . ."I hesitated none the less. "I was . . . I was . . ."

"What happened?"

I hung my head and dropped to the ground in shame. "I was raped. . . ." I admitted in a quiet voice.

No one said a word, but I saw Taekorra kneel in front of me. "My master, correct?"

I nodded, body shaking in fear again.

"That's why you killed yourself," he deduced, "and tried to do so again when I resurrected you."

I said nothing.

"And I suppose that's what's been torturing your sleep these past two days."

I didn't need to reply, for he knew he was right.

"I suppose I can see why you didn't say anything." He sat down on the hard ground next to me. We were seated just outside the crumbling town walls, their charred stone shadowing us. It was silent for several minutes before he spoke again. "Do you want revenge?"

The question struck me. _Did_ I want revenge? Of course I did, my mind said. Ganondorf had stolen something from me that I could never get back. I wanted to make him suffer for it, suffer as long and painfully as possible for every night I would spend from now until the day I died tortured by the memory of what'd happened. Yet, there was a small part of me that didn't want revenge. I pushed it out of my mind. Now was the worst time for doubt.

"Yes."

Taekorra smiled a little smile. "Then come with me. I can help you take revenge, if you help me get the Triforce."

I looked piercingly at him. "All right."

o

_**It never was and never will be,  
**_**_You don't know how you've betrayed me,  
__And somehow you've got everybody fooled . . ._**

o

We hurried through the abandoned town of Hyrule. Everywhere I looked, I saw visions of the city in its time of prosperity. I shut them out impatiently as I followed Taekorra up a few wide stone stairs to the door of the Temple of Time. He pushed one of the heavy doors open and we went inside.

The memories that came up here were impossible for me to ignore._ '"Yes, the_ _Triforce of Courage, which you hold in your hand." Ganondorf said triumphantly, "You owe it to me." I screamed at the top of my lungs, "No!" Link held up his right hand and shouted something at Ganondorf. His hand began to glow with a green light. I felt a stabbing pain in my own right hand as the Triforce of Wisdom reacted to Link. "Link, no!" I beat my fists on the crystal, the searing pain in my hand nearly blinding me, but to no avail. A bolt of light sliced cleanly through Link's wrist._

_'"Noooooo!" I screamed. Ganondorf laughed as Link grasped the bloody stump of his arm in agony; his severed hand melted away into a thick emerald mist. The pain in my hand dulled to a throb as I sank to my knees. The Triforce of Courage was now in the hands of the King of Evil. "I knew you weren't one to throw your life away on some princess."'_

"Sheik?" Taekorra's voice jolted me back into reality. "Are you all right?"

I cast a glance at Link. He wouldn't meet my eyes, but I knew he remembered. Like he'd said before, he was reminded of it every day. I refrained from saying anything about it.

"What are we looking for?" Malon asked, poking around a tall granite pillar. "What could possibly be in this dusty old temple?"

Taekorra frowned. "Something very powerful, you silly girl."

Link's eyes flashed angrily.

I sighed.

Taekorra shut his mouth and led us to the front of the temple and stopped at a stone alter. The carvings on it were written in ancient Hylian, but the sorcerer knew what needed to be done. From a pocket, he pulled three small stones, the keys to the Sacred Realm, which was no longer sacred. He placed them on the alter then turned expectantly to me.

"Do you know the song, Sheik?" he asked.

I nodded. "But you can't open this door without the Ocarina of Time," I pointed out.

He smiled and pulled something out of his pocket, tossing it lithely to me. I caught it without a hint of trouble, feeling the familiar contours of the ovular instrument. "How did you get this?"

Taekorra grinned mysteriously. "Wouldn't you like to know?"

I pulled the white scarf away from my mouth and held the ocarina to my lips. With a soft breath, I played the ever-familiar Song of Time. On cue, the hidden door behind the alter groaned and slid slowly open. I heard Malon gasp and I flashed a smug smile at Taekorra before pulling my scarf back into place.

We walked around the alter and into the hidden room, at the center of which stood the stone Pedestal of Time. Imbedded within it was the Master Sword, the vessel that held the fate of all Hyrule in balance. I stopped, realizing the flaw in this plan. "How can the Master Sword take all three—"

"—Four," Malon corrected.

I groaned. "All four of us back through time?"

Taekorra smiled again. I was beginning to hate that look. "We'll hold hands."

"Hold hands?"

"Do you have a problem with that?"

"Uh. . . ."

"Good." Taekorra stepped up to the sword. "Let's go."

Link grabbed the hilt with one hand, Malon grabbing his elbow. Taekorra took Malon, and I hung on at the end. In one swift movement, he drew the sword out. Suddenly, light sprung up around us, rushing madly toward the ceiling.

_Goddesses help me, _I willed as I felt my feet lifted from the ground.

o

_**Never was and never will be,  
**_**_You're not real and you can't save me,  
__Somehow now you're everybody's fool. . . ._**

o


	3. Part Three: Souls of the Forgotten Realm

**Disclaimer:** _The Legend of Zelda _is property of Nintendo and Shigeru Miyamoto, all rights reserved. I am in no way affiliated with these companies, or any legal proceedings concerning _The Legend of Zelda_. This story has been written purely out of enjoyment, and is not intended to make a profit, steal ideas, or offend anybody, though all original characters are my own property. Any similarities between my work and anyone else's is purely coincidental. "Going Under" lyrics are property of Evanescence, all rights reserved.

o

**_"Tainted Wisdom"_ - Part Three: Souls of the Forgotten Realm**

By The Last Princess of Hyrule

o

**_Now I will tell you what I've done for you,  
__Fifty-thousand tears I've cried . . . _**

o

"Goddesses damn you, Taekorra!" I shouted profusely. We were spinning at a sickening rate, flying where I had no idea. The only thoughts in my mind were how much I hated traveling through time and wished this would all stop.

Then, the moment that crossed my mind, it came true. Everything suddenly froze and we hung in nothing for a full second. Then, we were yanked down and I slammed brutally into something very solid, knocking the wind out of me.

I lay stunned for a moment, staring up at an evil red sky. It took my mind a minute to realize that this was quite unordinary. With a loud groan, I pushed myself up and looked around.

Taekorra was sitting a few feet in front of me, rubbing his head with a pained look on his face. To my left, Link was helping Malon to her feet. I stood.

"Where are we?" Malon asked.

Everyone looked at Taekorra expectantly. He pushed himself up and looked around. "Wherever we are, it certainly isn't where I wanted us to be."

"We're not twenty years in the past?" Link asked.

"We could be," Taekorra replied with a noncommittal shrug. "But I don't think this is Hyrule."

"Where then?"

"I have no idea."

"Well, we can't stand around here all day," the hero said. "Let's go."

"Where?"

"To find a town." Link started off heading where I guessed was east. It was hard to tell without a noticeable sun.

"Do you think there will even be any?" Taekorra hurried after. Malon and I followed.

Link didn't answer.

o

**_Screaming, deceiving, and bleeding for you,  
__And you still won't hear me . . ._**

o

After hours of walking, there was still no sign of anything. My legs were very sore and it took all the energy I had just to take the next step, only to realize I had to take another. Malon complained incessantly about her pain until Link picked her up and began to carry her, which quieted her. The trip was almost enjoyable after that until she spoke again.

"I'm hungry," the farm girl stated to no one in particular.

I rolled my eyes. Taekorra sighed again.

Link gave her an understanding look. "I'm sorry, dear. I wish I had something for you to eat."

"Are we almost there?"

"I'm not sure."

"Where are we?" she asked again.

"I don't know."

"How are we going to get home?"

"I don't know."

"I miss Dad."

"So do I."

I sighed and tuned them out. There was only so much of the two I could listen to. Instead, I occupied myself by counting how many things were different in this world from Hyrule. The sky was red, for one. I looked around. The grass we walked on was a dead lavender color.

Taekorra noticed my interest in something and walked up beside me. "What are you looking for, Sheik?"

"Nothing," I answered. "Just looking around."

"Do you know where we are?"

I shook my head. We were walking parallel to a river and following the direction the water flowed.

"Have you ever seen green water like this before?" Taekorra asked, trying to make conversation.

"No." I studied the river hard. It looked almost familiar to me, the way it joined with a few little streams on the other bank.

"I did once," he went on. "There was a strange pool in the Lost Woods that I stumbled upon one day. It was as still as glass and as green as the trees overhead."

We walked past a spindly gray tree, its sharp dead branches clawing at the bloody sky. Not too far ahead were a few more.

"When I touched it, the pool turned silver and ripples started rolling across it without even a breath of wind."

A thick grove of dead trees loomed ahead of us. I stopped when I saw them.

Taekorra noticed my absence. "Sheik?"

My hands began to tremble. "This is the Dark World."

o

**_Going under . . .  
__Don't want your hand this time—_**

o

"The Dark World?" Taekorra repeated. "How can you be sure?"

"It's a perfect mirror of Hyrule, we just don't recognize it because everything is different colors," I explained. "But, if we were in Hyrule, we would be about to enter the Kokiri forest just ahead."

Link set Malon down and crossed his arms. He had been raised in the forest and I doubted he enjoyed seeing it like this, even if this _was _a parallel image.

"Why are we going this way?" he asked.

I hesitated. "It feels right."

"We're traveling off a _feeling?_" Link exclaimed. "So, you really have no idea where we're going?"

I didn't say anything, but fortunately, I didn't have to, for Taekorra fielded the question. "Do you have a better direction? If so, I for one would love to hear it."

Link glared at him, but was silent.

"That's what I thought." Taekorra scanned our group with a stern look on his face. There was a certain finality to his look that kept anyone from speaking up. "Let's go."

We walked on. As we came closer to the Dead Woods, the tugging I had sensed earlier began to strength. Before I saw the trees, that feeling hadn't even been worth paying attention to, much less accrediting its existence. It was hard to describe, but it reminded me of Impa, the way it kept nagging at my mind.

As we stepped into the forest, the feeling shattered and became voices, hundreds of whispering voices. "Zelda. . . ." they said. "Zelda. . . . "

_(Shut up,)_ I willed.

"Zelda. . . ."

_(Shut up!)_ I covered my ears, but the voices were never outside. They'd been in my head all along.

"Zelda. . . ."

It was evident that I couldn't hold them out, so I decided to try to talk to them instead. If they knew my name, they surely had some sentient thought. So, I cleared my mind and channeled exactly what I wanted to say in a single thread.

_(Who are you?)_

"She speaks. . . ." the voices said simultaneously. "She speaks to us. . . ."

_(Who are you?) _I repeated, more insistent.

"Souls. . . ."

_(Souls?)_

"Souls! Daft Hylian, what do you think?" the voices snapped. Apparently, I had offended them. "This is the Dark World, is it not . . .?"

_(I'm sorry,) _I said. _(Why are you here?)_

"We are trapped. . . ." they said.

_(Where are you?)_

"Here . . . in the Dead Woods. We are waiting for you. . . ."

_(Waiting for me? Why?) _Fear tickled the edges of my mind.

"You are going to free us. . . ."

o

**_—I'll save myself,  
__Maybe I'll wake up for once . . ._**

o

The distinct line between reality and insanity was beginning to blur as I listened to the voices. They grew louder as I went along. Obviously, they were leading me somewhere. The members of my group hadn't spoken since we entered the Dead Woods.

_(How am I supposed to free you?) _I asked. _(I don't know anything about you.)_

"You don't need to. . . ." the voices answered. "All you have to do is defeat the Evil King. . . ."

Evil King? Oh goddesses, no. There was no way in Hyrule I was going to face Ganondorf again just to free a bunch of annoying souls. I wouldn't face him again for anything. _(I don't think I can do that,) _I told the souls.

They replied angrily. "Fool! Are you or are you not the holder of the Triforce of Wisdom?"

_(Not), _I admitted without any guilt.

"Are," they argued. "You've only lost your prize. . . ."

_(I already know that.) _My patience was beginning to fade with my grip on reality. _(What I _don't _know is where to find it.)_

"That is why you are here. . . ."

I stopped. _(Do you know where the Triforce is?) _I asked eagerly.

"Here in the Dead Woods . . ." the souls replied. "With us. . . ."

Taekorra looked back at me. "Sheik? Something wrong?"

"The Triforce of Wisdom is here," I said.

Link and Malon stopped, hearing my words, and turned around.

"Where?" asked Taekorra.

"I don't know," I admitted. "Somewhere in the Dead Woods."

"How do you know it's here?" Link asked.

"The souls told me."

The three members of my group exchanged skeptical glances. I sighed. What other reaction should I have been expecting? Link hated me, Malon disdained me, Taekorra didn't trust me, and all three knew my horrible secret. It came as no surprise that they would think me crazy as well.

But, proud fool I was, I was determined to prove them wrong. "I can lead you to it," I said.

Bad move, I instantly knew.

"How?" Taekorra regarded me doubtfully. "You just said you didn't know where it was."

"I can find it."

The sorcerer shrugged. "Go ahead. No one else has had any better directions to take and they're all the same as far as I'm concerned."

I nodded and took the front of the group. If those souls were wrong about the Triforce, I was in for it.

o

_**Not tormented daily,  
**__**Defeated by you,  
**_**_Just when I thought I'd reached the bottom,  
__I'm dying again . . ._**

o

_(Souls?) _I called.

"Follow us, Zelda. . . ."

_(Where are we going?)_

"North. . . ."

_(No, where in the forest?)_

"An empty place were no trees grow," they said. "A place covered in ash and bones. That is where we wait. . . ."

_(The Triforce is there?)_

"Perhaps. . . ."

I sighed and trudged on. The souls were absolutely no help. I had no trouble following their voices, but they never gave me a moment's peace. Each one wanted me to hear their fate until the once synchronized voices became a loud thunder of chaos.

_(Shut up, all of you!) _I finally shouted in frustration. The noise stopped and, for a moment, I thought I'd won. Unfortunately, a moment later, my sight went dead and I was consumed by vision.

_I entered a room to find the window had been opened, the heavy crimson draperies fluttering in the strong breeze. _It must have been that silly new maid, _I thought to myself, a small smile on my face. I pulled the frames and they closed with a delicate click. _

_I sat on the bed and pulled my long black hair into three groups, braiding them for the night. I was halfway down my back when I heard the creaking of the old wooden door leading in. I looked back, expecting to see one of the servants, yet there was no one. When I turned around I found myself face to face with what looked like a terrible shadow, but it was a man with shining black eyes. I barely had time to scream when he_—

"Stop!" I shouted. "Stop it!"

"Stop what?" Taekorra walked up to me and tapped my shoulder. "Sheik, what is it?"

I opened my eyes and looked at him. "It was . . . never mind." I stepped past him and walked on.

But Taekorra caught up and traveled at my side. "Is it the souls?"

I thought I heard a hint of mockery in his voice. "It's nothing. Leave me alone."

"If it were nothing, you wouldn't have called out."

"It's just my memory again," I lied. "Go away."

"We're going the same way, Sheik," Taekorra said. "And you really should learn to lie better. It was far too obvious."

I sighed. "Stop bothering me."

"Tell me what's wrong."

"No."

"Then I'm not leaving."

I clenched my fists at my sides. He could be horribly annoying when he wanted to be. "You wouldn't believe me if I did."

"Try me." Taekorra smirked.

I looked him in the eye and said, "The souls were talking to me again."

Taekorra shrugged. "I figured as much. What were they saying?"

"One was showing me a vision."

"Of what?"

I hesitated. "I don't know."

Taekorra didn't reply.

"I knew you wouldn't believe me," I said, unable to keep the hurt out of my voice.

"You're a real pessimist, Sheik. Of course I believe you. Why shouldn't I?" Taekorra gave me a serious look.

I opened my mouth to speak, but the souls cut me off. "Quiet, Hylian, you've arrived. . . ."

o

**_I'm going under,  
__Drowning in you . . ._**

o

The skeleton trees stopped abruptly at the edge of a dead gray clearing. It looked as forbidding as the souls had described. Piles of fine colorless ash lined the side of the trees to my right.

_Ashes . . . _I walked over to it and touched the powder with the tip of my finger. The dust was soft, I found as I scooped up a handful. The movement blew the grains off and away. I looked down at the pile and spotted something sharp sticking out. I dusted off my hands and grabbed it. The object was hard, a clean white against the ash.

_Bones . . . _I looked around and saw many more pieces of bone sticking up. This was a graveyard, I realized. _(What _is _all this?) _I asked the souls.

"Us. . . ."

I dropped the bone and stumbled back. _(How . . . ?)_

"We were all taken to the Dark World by the King of Evil during the Imprisoning War. We threatened his power, so he tortured us, one by one, then banished us to this Din-forsaken realm of death. . . ."

_(How did you die?)_

"We were dead when we arrived. . . ."

"Link, what _is _all this?" Malon clutched her husband fearfully.

"I don't know."

I ignored them and focused my attention on the souls. _(Where is the Triforce?)_

"Buried in the ashes. . . ." came a singing reply. "Buried in the ashes. . . ."

_(What?)_

"Long dead, long dead, and now you lie buried in the ashes. You stole everything from me, but I won't let you win. This fire burning in me sears my soul, and you will feel it too. You're long dead, oh long dead, and buried in the ashes. . . ."

_(Long dead . . . ) _I repeated. _(Long dead . . . )_

"'And buried in the ashes.'"

I was surprised to hear Taekorra speak the last line of the song. He clutched his tall black staff tightly between his hands and his face was contorted in concentration.

"Taekorra . . .?" I started. "Can you hear the souls?"

"'This fire burning in me sears my soul, and you will fell it too,'" he repeated. "These are the souls?"

I nodded without a word.

"Buried in the ashes, buried in the ashes. . . ." the voices sang. "You took me, but I'll bury you, bury you in the ashes. . . ."

_(Where is the Triforce?) _I asked.

"Buried in the ashes. . . ."

_(Where?)_

"Buried in the ashes. . . ."

_(Damn it, tell me!)_

"Buried in the ashes. . . ."

My heart leapt and I felt a jolt of power scream through me. I looked around and felt the source deep within the piles of ash. I dropped to my knees and began to dig through the powder with two hands, shoving it carelessly away. A dazzling blue light shown under the gray.

What a fool I was. They had been telling me all along.

"It's—" Malon started.

Link's eyes grew wide.

"—The Triforce of Wisdom. . . ." Taekorra's voice was all awe.

I drew the gleaming relic from the dust. _(Buried in the ashes.)_

"Buried in the ashes. . . ." the souls echoed.

o

_**I'm falling forever,  
**_**_I've got to break through,  
__I'm going under . . ._**

o

The next thing I knew, Link, Malon, Taekorra, and I were standing in front of the altar. I blinked and looked at my right hand. The Triforce of Wisdom had absorbed into my skin, the way it had when the Triforce was first split. The resonating energy it gave off gave me a feeling of apprehension, remembering what had happened the last time I held it.

Malon looked around in confusion. "What happened?" she asked in confusion, a dumbfounded look on her face. "Are we home?"

"I think so," Link answered. "This _looks _like the Temple of Time. . . ."

"It is," I assured him.

Link gave me a skeptical look. I ignored it.

"So, now what do we do?" He crossed his arms and leaned back against the altar.

"Sheik must tap into the Triforce of Wisdom and control its power." Taekorra looked over at me.

I shook my head. "I don't think I can do that."

"Wait," said Malon. "I thought _Princess Zelda _was the holder of the Triforce of Wisdom. What does _Sheik _have to do with that?"

We looked over the farm girl as if she'd said something stupid, which she had. Malon blushed a vivid crimson and Link whispered something in her ear.

Her eyes lit up. "He _is_?"

I sighed.

Link nodded.

"Oh. . . ." Malon's face was all amazement at the revelation. "Okay. Then why can't she—he—Sheik control its power?"

Everyone turned expectantly to me. I felt blood rising to my cheeks. "I don't know how."

Taekorra smiled, the way he did whenever he knew something no one else did. "You can focus your telepathy, correct?"

"Yes," I answered.

"You can send to any object you want, real or inanimate, correct?"

"Yes."

"Send to the Triforce."

I stared blankly at him. "What?"

"Treat the Triforce as if it were a real being," he explained. "I have studied the legends of the Triforce for a very long time and I have substantial evidence to believe that the Triforce is not an object, but a sentient being."

"'A sentient being?'" I repeated.

"Yes, Sheik." Taekorra was beginning to become frustrated with my lack of comprehension. "Treat it like you did the souls in the Dark World. Can you do that?"

I nodded uncertainly. "I'll give it a try. . . ."

o

**_Blurring and stirring the truth and the lies,  
__So I don't know what's real and what's not . . ._**

o

I took a deep breath. _(Triforce . . . ?) _No, that was a stupid way to address it. _(Great Triforce of Wisdom, I beseech thee. Grant me the opportunity to consol with you.)_

A soft whisper, cool and vivid, filled my mind. "Princess Zelda of Hyrule . . . at last . . ."

_(Great relic, I request a favor.)_

"Oh . . .? What is this favor . . .?"

_(I wish to bring the last two Triforce pieces to me. To do that, I would borrow your power and create a force of attraction that would draw them directly to the Holder of the Triforce of Wisdom.)_

"Why shouldst I grant thee use of my vast power . . .? Thou has once already proven thou ist not a fitting Holder . . ."

_(With all do respect, Dear Triforce, but why then did you return to me?)_

"For there ist always hope, even whence one ist thought near lost . . . Thou, Zelda of Hyrule, knowst the wrongdoing of thy actions and willeth the confidence to right them . . . I believe thy heart ist truly pure, beneath the fear hard wrought upon it, twisting its fair innocence . . ."

_(Then . . . will you help me?)_

"Assured, Zelda of Hyrule, that I shalt do . . . but if the benevolence within thy heart is altered, I shall be forced to remit upon thee a horror which maketh any earthly fears appear comical . . ."

_(I understand.) _I pledged. If this didn't work, I knew I would kill myself anyway.

"That, Princess Zelda of Hyrule, ist something I wouldst make unachievable . . ."

_(Yes, great relic.)_

Then, my body began to feel warm. The heat began in the center of my chest, my heart, and spread in all directions. It fed even the tips of my fingers. This warmth could only be the divine power of the Triforce.

I was awed with the strength I felt. I was sure I could conquer the world if I wanted. "This is merely a taste of my power, but I shalt not allow thou more . . . This ist all thee shalt need to completeth thy task . . ."

_(Thank you . . . ) _

I could tell the others were staring at me, but my eyes were closed and I gave them no heed. Cupping my hands together, I focused on a single thought, bringing the Triforces to me. It took no words for me to create the law, no complicated gestures, and no special relics. Only the most powerful magic could do something without supportive items.

_(Great Triforce of Courage . . . ) _I called. _(Return to me . . . )_

There was a tremendous hum of power, responding to my summon.

_(Return to me . . . ) _

"Cometh, Princess Zelda of Hyrule . . . Holder of the Triforce of Wisdom . . . Cometh I shalt . . . Cometh . . ."

_(Relic of Power . . . ) _I averted my concentration from the Triforce of Courage to the Triforce of Power. _(Return to me . . . )_

I expected it not to hesitate at all, but with it under Ganondorf's control, I should have known better. "Never . . . Thou Princess Zelda of Hyrule ist not master of the Triforce's power . . ."

o

_**Always confusing the thoughts in my head,  
**_**_So I can't trust myself anymore,  
__I'm dying again . . ._**

o

It must have been wrong, I decided and tried again. _(Great Triforce of Power . . . ) _My summon was more insistent this time. _(Return to me . . . )_

"No . . ."

_(Return to me . . . )_

"I do not answer to the Holder of the Triforce of Wisdom . . . only to the Goddess Din . . . Din doth not call, I doth not cometh . . . Realize this, Zelda of Hyrule . . ."

_(Return to me . . . )_

"Never . . ."

_(Return . . . Return . . . )_

"I shalt not . . ."

I sighed and hung my head. My entire body ached from the strain of so much telepathy. I was barely able to comprehend the voices speaking to me.

"Sheik?"

It was Taekorra. I opened my eyes, hardly able to focus on him.

"Holder of the Triforce of Wisdom . . ."

Unfortunately, before I could say a word to him, the Triforce of Wisdom spoke to me. "Princess Zelda of Hyrule . . ."

_(Great relic . . . ) _I acknowledged that I was listening. _(I cannot do it . . . )_

"Rest and thou shalt try again . . ." the relic told me. The way it spoke gave me the fleeting sense that something was not right. For some reason, I couldn't believe that this was the same Triforce as before. "Thou wilst succeed, as I hath promised . . . Sleep now . . ."

_(No . . . ) _I tried to argue. _(Please no . . . )_

"I knowst thy fears and thou shalt fear more if thy wish to disobey . . ."

_(No . . . )_ I said once more, but the Triforce forced me into sleep, the same way Taekorra had only a day before. The memories returned, as I expected they would. _'"Only one thing missing," he said his eyes flickered to the Triforce of Courage. He placed two fingers on his right hand. The Triforce of Power sparked and glowed on it. I felt a tingling in my right hand as the Triforce of Wisdom flashed into view. _

_'"Just as I thought," he said, staring at my gleaming hand, "You do hold the Triforce of Wisdom." I stood up. There was something in his words; something in the way he said them that made my skin grow cold. He was looking at me again, flaming orange eyes shining in the firelight.'_

"Let me free!" I knew I screamed in reality, but the spell the Triforce had placed upon me was too strong. I was pulled into my mind again. '_He took a step forward. I stepped back. "Scared, Princess?" he laughed, taking two more steps. I felt my blood boil. Scared? After seven years of living in fear of discovery? Of watching my every move to keep myself safe? Of risking my life to help that so-called hero just so he could betray me! I know longer knew that kind of __fear__. But the fear I felt now was different. No longer for my physical safety but on a darker scale. Fear of what might come next.'_

Taekorra heard my scream. Somewhere deep within his cold, distant heart, something came to life. "You're torturing her!" he shouted, though he did not even know who my adversary was. "Come out and fight!"

"Sleep, Princess . . ." I heard the voice for sleep. "Sleep well, Princess, for you will need it soon, won't you?"

That voice . . . I recognized a familiar sneer in that voice. I was sure it was Ganondorf, undoubtedly sure.

o

**_I'm going under,  
__Drowning in you . . ._**

o

"Ganondorf!" I shouted, still trapped away from reality. _'H__e laughed again, almost maniacally. My torrid blood quickly turned to ice. His intentions were becoming clearer to me with each minute. My heart knew what was going to happen, but my mind willed it not to be true. I could feel myself begin to shake and prayed he didn't notice. Ganondorf came closer until he was right in front of me. _

_'I could feel his breath on my face. My fear welled up in my breast. There was no one here to protect me from him; no one to pull him away. But I couldn't give in so easily. I must be strong.'_

"I know it's you!" I yelled. My mind was fighting the spell. He must have tapped into the power of _his _Triforce to do this to me. There was no way anything but the divine relic could hold me back like this.

However, for all my fighting, I could not break away. '"_You'll never give in will you?" I heard footsteps and swiveled around to see Ganondorf advancing on me slowly. "If I cannot bend you to my will, than I shall be forced to break you." There was no one here to protect me from him, but I was not going to give in. _

_'I would not be beaten by him! At least, that was what I told myself, repeating it in my mind like a mantra. But my body convulsed under his gaze. "What are you going to do to me?" I asked, voice dripping with fear. "Whatever it takes."'_

"It takes nothing!" I screamed. "It takes nothing, goddesses . . . it—takes—nothing!"

Suddenly my eyes snapped open and I was out of the dream. Taekorra was standing at ready in the center of the temple. Link had drawn his sword and stood in front of Malon protectively. I was sprawled on the marble floor at the foot of the altar.

"Show yourself, Ganondorf!" Taekorra was shouting, waving his staff around menacingly. "Do you hide behind your power? Will you not fight me?"

A sharp, cold wind shot through the temple. I leapt to my feet. Standing in the midst of the temple doors was my glowering adversary. My heart jumped and beat faster. My blood swirled in my veins and fear began to bite my sanity once more. I screamed when he looked into my eyes.

"Princess Zelda, alive," he said, seeing instantly past my disguise to what was within. "The former Hero of Time and his wife." He regarded Link with a smile. Link narrowed his eyes. "And my lack-loyal Taekorra. Isn't this nice?"

He walked inside slowly. "I was beginning to wonder what happened to you," Ganondorf went on. "Are you no longer my servant?"

"I am beholden to no one," Taekorra said through gritted teeth.

"Oh, I wouldn't be so sure about that." A small smile crept up at the corners of his mouth. "You're beholden to the princess, I sense." The smile widened, baring his teeth. "You _love _her . . . don't you?"

Taekorra was speechless. "I . .." His response was hesitant. He looked from me, to Ganondorf, to Link and Malon, and back to me. I could see the longing and confusion in his features. "I . . . I am beholden to no one."

o

**_I'm falling forever,  
__I've got to break through . . ._**

o

Ganondorf laughed. "Well, that's good to know. You won't mind then if I take her away, would you?"

Again, the sorcerer didn't answer right away. "Ye—" He stopped and looked at me, meeting my eyes. He saw in them only a shadow of the fear that gripped my body just then, but that was enough to set his decision. "No."

Ganondorf's smile froze. "No?"

"That's what I said." Taekorra adjusted his grip on the staff. "You can't have her."

The King of Evil recovered himself quickly. "So there _are _feelings there you won't admit."

"She doesn't deserve to suffer at your hands any longer," Taekorra said. "She's been tortured enough since I brought her back, and she doesn't deserve any more."

Ganondorf looked at me again. I didn't move. "I don't think she believes its torture. I think she likes it."

My eyes grew wide and I could not keep the memory from coming. '_Gently, he pulled me to my feet. My skin felt warm. I looked up at him and before I knew what I was doing, I kissed him. My mind was screaming that it was foul but it wasn't. Being kissed when you want to be is pleasant. __Not to my surprise, he kissed me back. It felt so wonderful, to be with a man. Oh, such pleasure must never have been known before now. I couldn't get enough, loving every minute. Somewhere in the back of my mind, my old conscious yelled at the wrongness of this act, and with him most of all, but I ignored it. My body swelled as I felt that pleasant, glorious feeling from last night. So wonderful, so great. I never wanted it to end.'_

"No!" I screamed. My fingers grabbed the cloth around my, the one around my head, and wrenched them off. They were choking me, smothering my thoughts. "No!"

"You remember, Zelda?" Ganondorf sneered, watching my silky blonde hair fall into view. I heard Taekorra gasp.

"I'm not like that!"

"Oh, I think you are."

"No!"

The King of Evil crossed his arms. "Don't lie to yourself, princess. You know _exactly _what you felt."

Hot tears fell from my ruby eyes. "I'm not like that . . ." I whispered. "I'm not . . ."

"Oh poor, confused little princess," Ganondorf taunted. "You're all alone in the world with no one to help you."

"I'm not like that . . ." I wept. "I'm not like that . . ."

"No hero to help you this time, princess," he walked slowly to me. I slid to the ground, landing with a thud on my knees. "No more loyal servants to con into saving you."

He began to circle me. I hid my face.

"But, why would you have loyal servants?" Ganondorf asked himself. "They probably all see right though you; the way I see though that pathetic disguise you wear."

"I'm not that way . . ."

"You are. Your mind lies to you and your heart is fool for a man who won't have anything to do with you." The heavy tapping of his boots counted time with the beats of my wretched heart. "Everything you think is a lie . . . just a lie you told yourself to hide the truth."

"No . . ."My voice was a whisper. "No . . ."

"Yes."

"No."

o

_**So go on and scream,  
**_**_Scream at me,  
__I'm so far away . . ._**

o

Ganondorf stopped and turned to Taekorra, whose confident response had broken the haunting monologue. "Are you one to speak, Taekorra?"

"You're the liar."

"Ah, and you're the face of truth itself, aren't you?" Ganondorf smiled. "Have you told your princess love what you do in my service?"

Taekorra was silent. I looked up.

Ganondorf noticed and went on. "Oh, so you haven't. Well, princess, you'll be surprised to find that he made sure no one escaped me until I wanted them to. I didn't want you to go, so Taekorra brought you back for me."

"He did?"

"Yes, of course." Taekorra hung his head as the King of Evil spoke. "His job was to gain your trust and let you lead him to the Triforce of Wisdom. Everything worked perfectly."

A sham? Everything I had been through . . . was a lie?

"The world ist full of lies, Princess Zelda of Hyrule . . ."

I recognized the divine sound. _(Great Triforce of Wisdom?)_

"Thy heart ist pure, Zelda of Hyrule . . ."the relic said. "Thine heart hast power to purge what tainted evil hath wrought upon the Triforce . . ."

_(How?) _I asked. _(What can I do?)_

"Believe the lies . . ."

_(What?)_

"Remember . . ."

Suddenly, the song the souls of the Dark World sang leapt into my mind. "'Long dead, long dead, and now you lie buried in the ashes. You stole everything from me, but I won't let you win. This fire burning in me sears my soul, and you will feel it too. You're long dead, oh long dead, and buried in the ashes . . .'"

_Fire . . . _

"'Fire burning sears my soul . . .'"

_Fire . . . Fire in my soul . . . _

Then I knew. "Fire!" I leapt to my feet. "Ganondorf, feel the fire!"

He turned, a look of half amusement on his face. "Princess?"

"You created a world where death and destruction reign," I said. "Nothing pure can grow here, and that is why I cannot beat you with purity. I must fight fire with fire."

I could almost swear there was fear on his face as I closed my eyes, channeling all my energies at the Triforce of Courage, which resided, at the moment, in my left hand.

_(Great Relic of Courage . . . ) _I called.

"Princess of Hyrule . . ." It acknowledged me.

_(Help me. Give me the strength to unite the Triforce once more. Give me the fire to win.)_

"The fire to win . . ." It repeated. My mind was all fire. Orange flames leapt up before my eyes and I was burning, my body engulfed in fire.

"Fire burning sears my soul . . ." I sang. "Fire burns my soul . . . You feel it too, I promise you . . . and lie buried in the ashes . . ."

The flares leapt from my body in all directions, aimed toward fiery souls I could not quell. They felt the burn of the Triforce of Courage, and I felt a life fall.

"Princess of Hyrule . . ." a Powerful voice whispered through my mind.

_(Triforce of Power.) _I answered.

"Thou art not a goddess," It said. "Yet thou hold the Triforce whole . . ."

_(The whole Triforce . . . )_ I repeated. _(The whole Triforce . . . )_

o

_**I won't be broken again,  
**_**_I've got to breathe,  
__I can't keep going under . . ._**

o


	4. Part Four: Time Stood Still

**Disclaimer:** _The Legend of Zelda _is property of Nintendo and Shigeru Miyamoto, all rights reserved. I am in no way affiliated with these companies, or any legal proceedings concerning _The Legend of Zelda_. This story has been written purely out of enjoyment, and is not intended to make a profit, steal ideas, or offend anybody, though all original characters are my own property. Any similarities between my work and anyone else's is purely coincidental. "Time Stood Still" lyrics are property of Madonna, all rights reserved.

o

**_"Tainted Wisdom"_ - Part Four: Time Stood Still**

By The Last Princess of Hyrule

o

**_Despair, regret, and tenderness,  
__Is what I feel for you . . ._**

o

For as long as I live, I do not think I will ever forget what happened to me. I was raped. Nothing anyone can say will make it hurt less, nor quell the memories that often return to haunt me. I learned many things about myself from this ordeal—things I will always cherish and things I wish I had not uncovered.

Taekorra was right that the Triforce is its own being. The great relic seems to have a mind of its own, as I have discovered. It will not be controlled without its consent, it does not answer to anyone it does not like, and it certainly will not grant any mortal use of its power anymore. Not that I ever want to try that again.

Link and Malon have returned to Lon Lon Ranch. This comes as no surprise to Taekorra, but I had hoped Link would admit to some feelings for me. I finally built up the courage to tell him of my love the day after Ganondorf was vanquished. Link's response was one of disgust followed by his prompt exit from the room, collection his little wife, and return to his home. I have never made move to meet with him since.

Ganondorf, for lack of a better word, has been utterly destroyed. His physical body, at least, was reduced to complete ashes by the blast from the Triforce of Courage. His spirit, if he had one, has disappeared from existence. However, I doubt he is truly gone. Ganondorf's life pursuit was to create as much chaos and suffering as he possibly could. After all the pain I felt at his hands, it is too much to hope that he will simply leave me alone.

Taekorra has not changed much over the past years. He is still a cynical, ruthless bastard whenever things are not going his way and a smug fool when they are. His power, on the other hand, has greatly increased—he has become a very powerful sorcerer, one I am both honored and obligated to have in my court. I would have to be a very stupid ruler not to grant him whatever he wishes. A man like Taekorra could make a terrible enemy.

I myself have stayed in the town of Hyrule. Taekorra and I were somehow able to reverse most of the magical damage Ganondorf had done to the city, including bringing his spiraling fortress to rest and revert it to its original state. The rest of the damage has been slowly rectified by physical labor and the help of common people brave—or stupid—enough to return to the capital.

Hyrule will never be completely clean of Ganondorf's evil. His ideals twisted many people to the core, and we are left with many criminals. Plenty of the people we caught were conspiring to seek out Ganondorf's wandering spirit and bring it to life. These people were sold into slavery, leaders put to death. My chief advisor said that if I showed these people any mercy, others would take that as a weakness and rise to challenge me.

After my falling out with Link, I decided I would never feel so for a man again, becoming the only monarch of Hyrule ever to rule without a king or consort. I am considered a shame to my country, as word quickly spread of my deflowering. I have my suspicions of who leaked my secret, but I do not bother act on it. The little farm girl is too busy raising a family to be a threat to me. Malon and Link had seven children. Their third boy is a spitting image of his father as a young child. I can't help tearing up whenever I see him.

As the years passed, I became much closer to Taekorra. When he wants to be, Taekorra can be very charming. Several times, he asked me to marry him. However, I had sworn never to marry and I was not about to dishonor myself more by breaking my word. Though I would not wed him, I found myself many times seeking his company for more private reasons than one usually has with one's High Imperial Sorcerer. My word quickly became the last relic of me left with honor when I found myself pregnant.

o

**_I loved you from the very start,  
__What else could I do . . . ?_**

o

I was twenty-five at the time, and it was obvious who was the father. I confronted Taekorra with this knowledge one day in the middle of winter.

"Your Majesty, are you absolutely sure?" he asks.

"Of course!" I counter. "I have all the symptoms! I'd think you'd have noticed at least _one _by now." I glare pointedly at him. Taekorra turns scarlet.

"I meant about me," he says in a small voice. "Are you sure _I'm_ the father?"

I cross my arms. "Tell me, Taekorra, how many men have you see hoping to court me? Better yet, how many men do you notice catching my fancy? I know you pay attention to that; don't try to deny it!"

Taekorra's blush deepens. "But, what if it's . . .?"

I know exactly who he is talking about. "That has to be the stupidest thing I have ever heard! How could Ganondorf be the father? That wasten years ago! If I were to have been impregnated by him, I would have known very soon after. My body wouldn't have waitedten years before showing signs!"

"But _I _can't be the father!" Taekorra's shock is quickly wearing off and being replaced by rage. "I've already got a family, Your Highness!"

Taekorra had wed one of my attendants, a comely girl with sleek silvery hair and dark eyes. They had three children already.

My blood boils. "So you deny it? You deny everything about us? We've never slept together, have we, Taekorra?"

Taekorra's blush returns.

"Damn it, Taekorra, I didn't do this to myself!" I rave on. "Goddesses, take some responsibility and admit your feelings! You have never once loved Myani, no matter how hard you try to convince yourself of it! Even after having three children with her, you have never committed yourself to her!"

"And you wonder why?" Taekorra snaps back, finally defending himself. "I told you a long time ago _exactly _how I feel about you! Why do you think I still hang around Hyrule? I hate this country like you could never understand! And this castle! No matter how much your servants clean it, it will always reek of Ganondorf!"

"Don't you think I know that!" I retort shrewishly. "Every time I go up to the tower to look out at the city, those fucking memories come back. You don't have those memories to torture your every turn, Taekorra! You were never raped! You lost your innocence exactly when you wanted to!"

"Yes, I remember!" Taekorra yells. "You'll remember too, I'll warrant! It was our first night together!"

"Of course I remember!" I shout back. "Now look where our most recent night has taken us! What am I supposed to say when I start to show! What am I supposed to tell everyone when the child is born! Would you like me to tell them the truth!"

"And then have us go though life with the constant whisper of 'it was the High Imperial Sorcerer who knocked up the Queen'! Would you like that, Zelda?"

"It couldn't possibly be worse than 'the Queen is so fickle, she let herself be deflowered before she was married'!" I retort. "Show some responsibility for once in your life! This is all your fault!"

"They say it takes two to tango, Your Majesty," he quips sadistically.

"Damn you," I say. "Goddesses damn you."

"It seems more like it's you they've been damning, Zelda," Taekorra replies, turning away from me. "Just look at this mess."

"Yes, look at it," I go on, my temper rising again. "What are we going to do about it?"

"I don't know," Taekorra says noncommittally. "I don't know."

o

_**You read my mind,  
**_**_You made me cry,  
__Time stood still . . . _**

o

In the end, we did not do anything. I made no moves to announce my pregnancy to the court, simply letting them discover as it progressed. Taekorra soon became my only comfort. I took solace in his embrace more and more through my first trimester. Eventually Taekorra's wife, Myani, learned what was happening. Thanks to her overly large mouth, word that 'the High Imperial Sorcerer knocked up the Queen' came out.

Not that I really cared anymore. I went about my duties in a kind of trance through the rest of my pregnancy. I paid little attention to the foreign dignitaries who came to call, administered my seal to whatever official-looking document was handed to me, and stayed away from my court as often as I could.

Nine months passed, leaving me with a healthy girl child whom I named Fayona. She is the most beautiful creature I have ever seen, with Taekorra's ruby eyes, my elegant ears, and my mother's delicate build. Where she got her hair will be a mystery to me forever. It is a radiant green, more vibrant than the color of the tunic Link used to wear.

Once it grew in, I found it lavishly thick and impossible to keep under control. Out of frustration, I had it cropped at her shoulders. This turned out to be a terrible mistake, for it nearly hid her entire face, save for the eyes, from view. She looked so much like a Holly bush, she ended up with the nickname. Foreigners are always awed by the little crown princess with her red Sheikah eyes, epitomized Hylian frame, and enigmatic hair.

All in all, life went rather well for me and my daughter until one day, when Fayona was two years old, and I received a visit from one of the last people I would ever expect.

I have been occupying myself in the playroom with Fayona today. We have a big book in front of us with many gorgeous hand-painted pictures on each page, along with large printed calligraphy. I am reading the book slowly to my daughter. I have decided it is time for her to learn to read.

"Queen Marie lives in this pretty castle," I read slowly. "_Marie Regina lveis en hest pyittre actsil_." As long as she was learning, I figure I might as well teach her Ancient Hylian too. "Now you read."

Fayona smiles at me and paws the book with her tiny hands. "Qween Mawee wivs in dis pwetty cassle. _Mawee Wegeena vees en hest yeetray akseel_."

Someday she'll read without the lisp. "Very good," I assure her. "Point to the castle for me." Fayona sticks her finger on the image of a set of granite walls and turrets. "That's it," I say with a smile, hugging her around her tiny waist.

"Dat's what we wiv in, wight Mama?" Fayona gapes up at me with an innocent grin covering her features.

"We certainly do," I tell her. "Who else lives here?"

"Taekowa!"

The smile freezes on my face, but only for a moment. Taekorra had not left residence at the castle when Fayona was born, as I expected he would. Instead, he remained loyal to me, despite Myani. Six months ago, they had another fight. Apparently Myani left, taking her three children with, for I have seen hide or hair of her since then.

Taekorra and I still have not wed. I know he loves me and it is this love that drove he and Myani apart, but I can never forgive him for the things he said when I told him about becoming pregnant. He has never told Fayona he is her father, and I doubt he ever will.

"Who else?" I ask Fayona, picking her up. "Lots of people live here in the castle, don't they?"

"Lossa peepo," Fayona echoes.

There is a loud knock on the door. I stand and turn around. "Enter!"

A guard in shining armor steps in and bows. "Queen Zelda, there is a man here to see you."

I try to think of who I could to be meeting with today. An ambassador from Calatia is supposed to arrive tomorrow, but no one I can think of should be here today.

"I'll receive him in the throne room," I reply. "Please show him there."

"Yes, Your Majesty." The guard bows and leaves the room. I follow, Fayona still in my arms, and make my way to the throne room.

"Who's heew, Mama?" Fayona asks me.

"I don't know, dear," I say. "Shall we go see?"

"Yeah!"

Such enthusiasm. I wish I could be like that.

o

**_And now I know the reasons why,  
__Time stood still . . ._**

o

I enter the throne room and seat myself on a high backed, gilt-framed chair remaining from generation after generation of Hylian kings. Queens never sat in this chair. To my left was a smaller, less ostentatious version of my throne, where, had I ever wed, I would be sitting this day, stood. Today it is empty, and probably will continue to be so for the rest of my reign. Fayona settles herself comfortably in my lap.

Several loud raps on the door and it opens to reveal three guards escorting in my visitor. I recognize him instant, though it has been many years since we last saw each other. Uncontrollably, my heart leaps as none other than Link walks into the room. Link's hair has grown out, and apparently he hasn't cut it for quite a long time, for it's nearly as long as mine was when I was seventeen, drawn back with a leather band. He is wearing dark trousers, a pale blue shirt with a smooth leather vest, and a thick, dark green cloak and hood draped over his shoulders.

"Your Majesty, may I present master Link," says one of the guards. I nod.

"Thank you," I tell them. "You may go."

Looking slightly confused, the guards do as I ask, bowing as they go. The door closes with a soft thud, leaving the room in silence.

Link makes no move to speak. Neither do it, but I have no obligation to say anything. It was he who came to the castle and sought to meet with me. He should have to start the conversation. However, before Link can say anything, Fayona pipes up.

"Mama, who's dis?" she asks innocently.

I hesitate. Who is Link, anyway? Certainly not a member of my court, nor a knight of my realm. He's neither family nor friend.

"He's an old acquaintance. . . ." I finally decide on, though I know the word will confuse Fayona.

"What's a 'aqwaintes'?" she asks, looking up at me.

I, however, have my sights on Link, glaring down at him with my cold sapphire eyes. "Just someone I used to know a long time ago."

"Oh." Fayona knows by my tone of voice that now is not a good time to ask questions.

Link opens his mouth to speak, then closes it on second thought. Again he opens it and tries to say something, but chokes on the words. They come out something like a cough.

"Excuse me?" I ask.

"You have a beautiful daughter," he tries again. He's mumbling and I can barely hear him.

"Thank you."

Fayona does not do anything. Normally, she would be bouncing all over the room, exerting energy from her seemingly tireless source, but right now, she just sits quietly on my lap, unsure. She does not seem to know what to think of this stranger. I have made no moves to show her that he is a person I like, yet Fayona's innocent nature has not taught her to hate. All this leaves her to do is sit, watch, and be confused.

"She's . . . what? . . . three . . .?"

"Two."

"Ah . . ." Link shuffles his feet nervously.

I glare.

Minutes pass.

No one speaks.

Finally, I can take it no longer.

"What are you here for, Link?" I demand. "Have you come here to ask me something or just stand there and look like a fool?"

Link's head snaps up from its examination of the red carpet leading to the throne. "As a matter of fact, I have something to discuss with you."

"Really?" I ask sarcastically. "Things not going well at home, or is everything just peachy? Let me guess, you want me to give you more land, or maybe I owe you some gold?" I offer him these suggestions with my face turned down in a frown. "Well? What do you want?"

"For your information," Link retorts quickly. "Life at home is perfect. Malon is wonderful, my children are angels, and I have everything I could ever need." He examines me for a moment. "Though I can think of a few things _you _could do to have. How about some honor? Or dignity? Either of those entice you?"

I make a move to stand, but think better of it. "You didn't come all the way to the castle just to insult me, did you? Because I can ruin that perfect little life of yours with a snap of my fingers. In fact, I don't know why I haven't done it before."

Link purses his lips, but keeps silent.

"Now, what's going on?"

o

**_Maybe I'm the next best thing to happen,  
__All the things we might have been . . ._**

o

"There is news in the northwest concerning some kind of curse," he informs me, trying to keep his temper in check. "People are turning up dead. Entire cities are destroyed overnight. Everyone is living in total fear of the next day."

"I've already heard rumor of this," I tell Link in a bored tone. "An escort from Calatia is on their way here to discuss it tomorrow. Besides," I add, "I don't see how this is my problem."

Link's eyes narrow. "The suspicions are that this is Ganondorf's doing."

My body seizes up in fright at the sound of the name. _Damn automatic reaction, _I think to myself. _I shouldn't be getting so worked up like this every time I hear mention of that name. _Link gives me an odd look, apparently noticing my movement. I hurriedly compose myself.

"And?"

Link scowls. "And what? Zelda, don't—"

"Your Majesty," I correct in a cold voice.

"Your Majesty," Link echoes reluctantly. "Don't you realize what this means? Ganondorf is on his way to a return."

I sigh. "Link, you obviously pay no attention to what goes on in the world outside your farm. The threat of Ganondorf returning comes up almost once a month. This is no different than during harvest time when some fool farmers near Lake Hylia could swear Ganondorf was making their crops shrivel into black nothings. It tookmy smartest vassals ages to realize that this was all result of poisons in the soil. These dying Calatians are no different. It's quite possibly the outbreak of some noxious plague or something."

There is a knock on my door. "Enter," I call in a tired voice.

Who other than the masterful Taekorra enters the throne room?

"Taekowa!" Fayona squeals in delight, leaps off my lap, and races into the sorcerer's arms.

"Oof!" exclaims Taekorra as he catches her, wrapping his arms around her tiny frame. "Goodness, Holly bush, you're getting big!"

Fayona smiles a gap-toothed grin at him. "Guess who's heew, Taekowa?" Fayona grabs his hand and drags him to the center of the room, to Link. "Dis is Mommy's owd aqwaintes, Wink!" she exclaims, pointing up at him.

Taekorra lifts his daughter into his arms. "Really?" he asks her with feigned interest. "And what's he doing here?"

Fayona shrugs. "I dunno. Someting abowt Cawatia and some body named Ganondworf," she tries to explain lightly, smiling in her innocent way.

Taekorra stiffens, then sets her back on the ground. Fayona runs back to me and leaps into my lap. Taekorra walks nearer to the throne, giving himself a good view of me and Link. Link and the sorcerer exchange heated glances, but say nothing to each other.

"Your Majesty," Taekorra says with a bow. "I was told to come straight to you. There has been a problem concerning the escort from Calatia."

I gather Fayona into my arms and stand. "What happened?"

Taekorra looks shiftily at Link, but goes on. "They were attacked just outside our borders. Luckily, a group of traveling merchants spotted them and brought them to the castle."

"Show me to them," I say. "I must speak to them as soon as possible."

o

**_A flame becomes a fading light,  
__That burns inside my heart . . ._**

o

The road to Calatia is a long, hard one. I have never been one to favor long journeys. For some reason, I can't get used to riding. It sounds stupid, I know, considering how many riding lessons I had as a child. I don't remember if I liked it then or not, but now, I simply detest it.

As we trot along the hard-packed earth, I try to focus on what had happened earlier in the castle. I arrived in the Great Hall, the only place big enough at the moment to fit the entire Calatian escort, to find it full of pain. Men were screaming, clawing at themselves like beasts. Some were covered in blood or dirt, others coughing it up from punctured lungs.

"My goddesses," I murmured to myself as I wove my way past the bodies to the front of the Hall. It was there that lay the ambassador and the king of Calatia himself.

I knelt beside him. "Your Highness," I said, "how are you feeling?"

"Better," he somehow managed to reply weakly. "But my men . . . what about them?" He started to sit up, but I pushed him down.

"They'll be all right," I said in a soothing voice, "but I need to know what happened to you."

The king closed his eyes. "We were on the border, only a few miles outside the town of Rikern . . ." I remembered Rikern, a quaint little Calatian town some ten miles north of Hyrule. "Rikern, it seems . . . was overrun with monsters . . . they're saying . . . they're saying . . ." the king coughed and blood splattered across my chest. I took no notice. "They're saying it's a mad spirit . . . spirit of Ganondorf . . . so say the farmers . . ."

I nodded. "I've heard. Do you think it really is?"

The king of Calatia looked at me sternly. "I am certain it is he . . . We were attacked by monsters . . . from beyond death . . . No mortal could have done this . . ."

I had feared as much.

Coming back to reality, I roll my shoulders and feel my back pop. Riding horseback has never agreed with me; I always find myself completely stiff after only a mile or two.

My company is small, setting out for Rikern. We are led by Link on a chocolate colored stallion with a black mane. The horse is still very young and loves to show off whenever possible. I have not had a chance to ask what happened to Epona, Link's favorite horse, but I guess she must have died by now. She was getting pretty old.

I follow Link on a white palomino, one arm holding the reins, the other around Fayona's waist, holding her in front of me. I hadn't originally planned to take Fayona, but the night before we left, I dreamt a terrible vision in which I was holding her out in the sunlight, but Fayona turned into a black demon and turned on me. I doubt Fayona is really a demon, but the symbolism of the dream was that Fayona had something to do with my task.

Taekorra rides on my right on a jet black mare. His face is turned down in a frown and he hasn't spoken since me set out. We argued for a good hour this morning on the subject of bringing Fayona along. I finally ended it by saying it was up to the parents and parents only to decide what's best for Fayona. As Fayona was in the room at the time, Taekorra did not argue his paternal rights, but accepted my decision with a bow and murmured, "Your Majesty."

"We'll be to Rikern very soon, Your Highness," Link shouts back. On the horizon I can see a cluster of little buildings slowly drawing near.

I have not figured out yet why Link chose to come. He hates me more than any one thing in Hyrule, he detests Taekorra just about as much, and would never leave his wife alone unless he had very good reason. However, I don't question him on the point.

The sun is about to set when we reach the town. I look around, fear beginning to solidify in the pit of my stomach. The clusters of buildings are washed in the beginnings of sunset, creating a picturesque vision of the city. However, while normally at this time, people would be bustling about the market with last minute errands, today the streets are empty. There are no people hurrying home, not merchants packing away wares for another day, no signs of life whatsoever.

I shudder and look around. "Where is everybody?"

Taekorra shrugs.

Link scans the area warily. I notice his hand lingering near his back, where an elegant sword has been strapped. I squint my eyes to get a better look at it. The sword he's carrying is the Master Sword. Then it hits me and I realize something must be terribly wrong. Link would not draw the Master Sword from the Temple of Time if he did not expect the fight of his life.

"Is there an inn somewhere?" Taekorra asks. "We should find a place to stay for the night and continue on in the morning."

Link nods. He nudges his stallion in the stomach and makes his way down the street. Taekorra and I follow, all of us moving without a word.

o

**_And like a castle in the sand,  
__It had to fall apart . . ._**

o

Indeed there is an inn. It is a rather large building with two stories and made from logs and white plaster. The structure, known as the White Corn Inn, doesn't look very sturdy to me, but there is no where else to stay in Rikern. Reluctantly, I dismount and lead my horse to the stables. As I expected, there is no groom on duty, but half a dozen horses hear me come in and nicker softly as I lead my palomino to a stall and tie her.

Taekorra meets me back outside. "How are you?" he asks. There is an odd look on his face. I think it is worry, but I have never seen Taekorra worried, so the expression is new.

"I'm all right," I answer, walking back to the front of the inn. "Is something wrong?"

"Huh?" Taekorra''s attention returns to me, as if it had been wandering. I frown. "Oh." He looks at Fayona, who yawns. "Nothing."

I don't believe him, but say nothing. He pushes open the door and we enter. Inside the inn are a crowd of noisy people. Their calls and drunken laughter seep from the tavern to the reception desk. I am slightly surprised to see them. After the deserted streets, I had expected to find the inn just as empty. However, it appears that the townsfolk come inside after the sun begins to set.

Link is already at the desk, waiting. Behind it stands a woman with white-blonde hair, almost the color of mine, and golden brown eyes. She smiles. "Can I help you?"

"We three rooms for the night," answers Link.

"I'm sorry, we only have two left," she replies.

Link looks back at Taekorra and me. We stare at him pointedly, waiting. Link sighs. "We'll take them," he says.

The woman hands him two keys. Link tosses one to Taekorra. We silently decide who will sleep where. I will take a room with Fayona and Taekorra, Link will be by himself. He obviously wants to be as far away from me as possible.

I shift Fayona's weight in my arms and follow the two men up the stairs. Our room is seven. Taekorra unlocks the door and pushes it. It creaks open to reveal a modestly furnished interior. There are two beds, a small wardrobe with a chest of drawers, several chairs, and a dirty window. The room smells musty, like it hasn't been used in quite some time.

I set Fayona on the bed nearest the door and sit down next to her. Taekorra throws his haversack and staff onto a chair and collapses into the other bed. Neither of us is hungry and Fayona is nodding off on my shoulder. I turn down the blankets, lay Fayona within them, and make my way to the other side.

Taekorra props himself up on his elbows and looks over at me. "How are you?" he asks again.

"No different from the last time you asked me," I reply.

Taekorra looks away, out the smudged window. "Have you thought about what you are going to do tomorrow?"

I remain silent. I have been thinking about it the entire day, but I still have no solution. The last time I faced Ganondorf, I had the power of the Triforce aiding me. Now, I have nothing. Once I commanded very powerful magic, the way Taekorra does now. But, over the years, it has dwindled into nothing.

"Yes," I lie. "I have a plan."

"What is it?"

There is a wry smile on Taekorra's face. Damn. He knows me too well.

"I'm going to . . . bind him . . ." I say, thinking fast and hoping he will buy it. "Using an old spell I know . . ."

He doesn't. "Bind him to what?"

I look hurriedly around me. There is a small bedside table between mine and Taekorra's beds. It's covered in dust and little else, but on the surface is an old crystal hand mirror. I grab it.

"This." I hold it up and blow the dust off it. It gleams and winks at me with reflected lamplight.

"A mirror," Taekorra says skeptically. "You think that little mirror will hold Ganondorf?"

"It's worth a try," I reply. "Besides,"I add on afterthought, "what else can we do?"

o

**_You made me laugh,  
__You gave me hope . . ._**

o

This time it's Taekorra who's on the spot. "I don't know . . ." He turns away from the window and looks down at the musty comforter atop his bed. "I don't know . . . I hardly understand why we're here."

"Link seemed to have reason to believe something wrong was happening," I say.

"Speaking of Link," Taekorra suddenly begins, "why _did_ he come? This doesn't directly affect him or his family—and it isn't like he's suddenly become the honorable hero you think of him."

"I—what?" I demand. "You think I see him as that?"

"Perhaps."

My eyes narrow. He's hit my soft spot and he knows it. "For your information, I haven't thought that since I was young. I was very naïve when that happened and I know better now."

He sits up on his bed, facing me, and props his chin on his hands. "Your mind might tell you that but your heart says otherwise."

"And how would _you _know?" I retort sharply. "How in seven ages could you possibly know what my heart desires?"

"Zelda, you're far to obvious. I saw the way you watched him as we rode today. It's the same way you've looked at him since I brought you back, and probably before as well." Taekorra studies me. "Even after everything he's put you through, you still love him."

I say nothing. How _dare _he presume to know _anything _about my love? How can he even _think _I still feel that way about Link? But then . . . no matter how many times I tell myself I don't love him, every time I see his face, every time the thought of him crosses my mind, I can feel my heart swoon uncontrollably. I can't admit I don't love Link because, much as I tell myself I don't, I do. But I won't give Taekorra the satisfaction of knowing he is right.

"Why do you even care?" I ask. "You never have before."

"I have,"he replies, "but it's _you _who does not care. Do you ever wonder why my marriage to Myani never worked out? Successful marriage cannot exist if one person is in love with someone else. I've never loved Myani and never will. She knows this as well as I do. And so do you."

"You had your chance once though," I bring up, "when I was first pregnant with Fayona. I offered you a place with me, but you didn't take it. You're a stubborn ass, Taekorra. It isn't that you love me, it's that you have never met someone you couldn't control. You just think of me as an obstacle—once I succumb to you and admit my love, you'll lose interest. I've seen your type before."

"That is a complete lie and you know it," Taekorra snaps. "I am not—I never will be—anything like that! Goddesses, you are so afraid of being happy you don't allow yourself feel so. I swear, Ganondorf took the best of you with him."

I leap to my feet and slap him, striking sharply with the back of my hand across his right cheek. "How _dare _you even _say_ that!"

I try to hit him again, but he grabs both of my wrists. I squirm against his tight grasp, trying in desperation to free myself. "Because I'm right," he answers.

I continue to struggle and he pulls my arms, dragging me from my perch on my bed down on top of him. My legs flail and I try to get up, only to be held in place by my wrists.

"Let me go!" I hiss. "Let me go!"

His grip never loosens.

"Damn it, Zelda, you are going to listen to me and listen good," he says in such a commanding voice that I cannot argue. "If this is the only way to get you to do so, then so be it. I have never, ever loved anyone in my entire life, until I met you. For nearly thirteen years, I have waited, hoping and praying you would let me into your life, but not for one second did you ever, in your longing for that Link, notice me. I thought, perhaps, if I got away from you and married another, my feelings would disappear and I would be free of you, but I was wrong. You can't ignore true love, Zelda, you can't. I truly love you and if I must wait forever for you to return my feelings, then goddesses damn me to an eternal wait."

By now I've stopped moving. Hot tears fill my eyes and I relax, dropping pitifully onto him and weeping quietly into his chest. He frees my wrists and I can feel his hands, comforting not restraining, touch my back. No words are necessary, not even to apologize. He knows.

The sun sets and twilight fills the room, but still we stay in our embrace. The sky outside is utterly black, starless, and our room seems even more so, but neither I nor Taekorra make any move. The night passes and I stay, clutched in his warm, loving, loyal arms, feeling something I had never felt before. Can this be love? Or is it a repercussion of longings I have always felt? Even after what he said to me, I am still confused. Do I love Taekorra . . . ? I think I do, but there still something in my heart that screams I love Link.

o

_**It's over now . . .**_

o

Dawn washes over our room, lulling me out of my pleasant rest. I lift my head and look around. Taekorra and Fayona—to my surprise—are still sleeping. I shift his arms and writhe out of his embrace. A place on my cheek is imprinted with the coarse fabric of his tunic. I rub it off-handedly as I yawn and look for my slippers.

After attempting to make myself look less bedraggled, I quietly open the creaking door and sneak downstairs, hoping there might be some breakfast at this derelict inn. The tavern is empty, save for a scruffy old man passed out beneath one of the tables, and the entire place smells of stale liquor and sweat. I refrain from holding my nose as I spot Link sitting at a table in the corner. Feeling my heart begin to pound, I walk over to him and sit down.

For a moment, he looks up and a slightly surprised look crosses his face. But it's gone in a split second and he turns back to staring at the wall.

"Is there anything to eat here?" I ask him, trying to make conversation. I feel so awkward being alone around Link, but for some reason, I really feel like I should talk to him.

Link shrugs.

I shift uncomfortably. "So, how long have you been up?"

He shrugs again.

I can feel my patience begin to drain. Here I am trying to be polite to him and all he does is ignore me. There is only so much of that I can take, _especially _from Link.

"What are you doing here?" I ask, somewhat sharply.

Guess what he does.

"You can't just keep ignoring me," I said, bristling.

Wonder upon wonders, he responds. "Watch me."

Great. Just what I wanted to hear.

I fold my arms. "You have to have some reason for coming all the way to Calatia. You wouldn't leave your precious Malon without a good reason. Especially to go anywhere with me."

"Leave her out of this," he retorts simply.

He's holding his temper a lot better than I am mine. "Explain," I demand in my most regal voice.

It, however, makes no difference. "You'll find out later."

I sigh and give up, slumping back in my chair. You just can't talk to Link. Fortunately, I don't have to be alone in his company very long, as Taekorra, carrying Fayona, enters the tavern and sits down with us. No words are exchanged between he and myself and I doubt Link even noticed he's here. Most of the breakfast—which consisted of what I think was porridge, but am still doubtful—conversation was an energetic monologue from Fayona about this "weawy stinky pwace".

At the end of the meal, I hold my daughter on my lap, listening to her complain about a rather large cockroach she saw on the floor when she woke up, Link stands and speaks to us at last.

"We should get ready," he says.

No one has to ask what he's talking about. Even Fayona has gone quiet. She seems to be able to sense that something big is happening. I still don't like having to have brought her, but my visions are rarely wrong. Yet, as I return to my room, a lump of worry lodges itself snugly in my throat.

o

**_Our happiness went up in smoke,  
__It's over now . . ._**

o

Outside, the streets of Rikern are still abandoned. Only Link, Taekorra, Fayona, and I are out. The sun is high in the sky and we have just left the inn. Link has drawn his Master Sword and holds it out defensively. Taekorra has his staff and I can hear him muttering spells under his breath. I hold Fayona tightly in my arms. The crystal mirror from the room is in my left pocket. The more I thought about it, the more the idea of imprisoning Ganondorf within it sounded probable.

"How are we going to find him?" I ask. No one answers. Apparently no one has thought up to this part yet.

As if on cue, dark clouds begin to cluster and the sun is blocked from view. A shrill wind gusts past, tossing my skirt torrentially. Link and Taekorra suddenly look more alert.

"I don't think we'll have to," says Link.

Somewhere very close to me, I hear a cold whisper. "Oh, Zelda . . ."

Oh dear goddesses, how I know that voice! I look around wildly, but I can see neither Ganondorf nor an outlet from where his voice could have come.

That horrible, rumbling laugh that sends chills down my spine no matter how many times I hear it, echoes all around me, emanating from just to my left. I look, but it isn't a vision of my tormentor that I find, but Fayona, her eyes, normally wide and innocent, narrowed and filled with coldness. Frozen fire burns in her eyes, driving into the back of my skull with a haunting look I have not seen for many long years.

I scream and cannot help dropping Fayona to the ground. Any other two-year-old would have burst into tears and hysteric screams, as I was doing now, but not a child possessed by the essence of evil. Fayona merely sits up and turns to face me, that haunting look on her face gleaming in a flash of lightning.

"Well, well, well . . ." Fayona's voice sounds so unfamiliar. "_Queen _Zelda." She laughs. "Hmmm, I think perhaps I should bow. That would be the proper thing to do when meeting the queen, wouldn't it?"

I back away, bumping into Taekorra. He wraps one free arm around my waist, holding his silvery staff out in front of us defensively. Fayona laughs Ganondorf's low laugh. "Ah, Taekorra. Still hanging around Her Royal Highness, I see. Have the years been good to the two of you?"

We don't answer.

Fayona looks down at herself, examining every angle as if only seeing it for the first time. In a way, I suppose this is true. "If I didn't know better, I'd say so."

Taekorra is the only one with enough courage to speak. "That has nothing to do with you."

Fayona laughs again. "Of course it does, you fool. I have _everything _to do with _everything_." Fayona leers at us. Taekorra glowers. Her grin widens at the sight of his reaction. I turn and bury my head in the fabric of his vest. How can he stand to see our beautiful daughter looking like that? The image of her burns in my mind.

"Poor little Zelda," Fayona taunts. "It hurts you so much. Perhaps this is what our daughter could have looked like."

My eyebrows draw together and tears stream down my cheeks as I clutch Taekorra more tightly.

"You don't like that thought, do you, Zelda dear?"

"What do you want?" Taekorra demands, gritting his teeth and glaring down at Fayona.

"I would think you'd know by now." She is still smiling.

"Zelda banished you from this world," Taekorra states. "There is no way you can take control of the Triforce without a body in this world."

"I don't think that will be much of a problem," Fayona replies. To emphasize her point, she pushes herself to her feet. "As you see, the Dark Void has very few limits on my power."

o

**_Maybe I'm the next best thing to happen,  
__All the things we might have been . . ._**

o

"So what's stopping you," Taekorra asks, "from just possessing someone and taking the Triforce for yourself? If you have so much power, I doubt this would be very difficult to accomplish."

"Oh, you know," Fayona says, feigning a tired voice and waving a hand idly. "It doesn't work very well when _I _try to take it." Her eyes shift to me. I turn and meet them, somehow feeling strong. "But if someone with a heart in balance were to get it for me . . ."

"Why not use Fayona, then?" Taekorra queries almost casually. What in Hyrule is he doing? He's acting as if he were still sided with Ganondorf . . . And then it hits me. Perhaps he never actually became good. Perhaps he was always a loyal supporter of the Evil King, biding his time feigning loyalty to me in wait for Ganondorf to return to power. Suddenly, I'm not sure of anything anymore.

"Your daughter certainly is an ideal individual to gain the whole Triforce, but if I tried to use her, my own qualities would show through when I tried to touch it. You know what happens from there."

"What do you want with us then?"

Fayona grins again. "_Zelda _will get the Triforce for me, won't you, dear?"

I look at her, feeling slightly confused. What is he talking about? "What?" My mind was other places while Taekorra and Ganondorf conversed, wondering about everything that has happened between Taekorra and I.

Fayona frowns. Ganondorf doesn't like to be ignored. His passion is being the center of everything, thus his desire to rule the world. Just one more ego to crush. Between he and Link, I've had as muchnarcissism as I can handle. Thank the goddesses Taekorra is not full of himself. But, maybe he actually is and that is just another lie. Great, now I'm really confused. I don't have much time to think about it when Fayona answers.

"I want you to bring me the Triforce," she repeats impatiently.

"Why," I ask, feeling very brave all of a sudden—or maybe just very stupid, "would I want to do that?"

Her twisted smile returns. "Do you love your daughter?"

"Yes."

"You wouldn't want anything to happen to her?"

"No."

"Then you should cooperate." Fayona is no longer smiling. Her round face is turned down in a serious frown. "I can easily leave her body and suck her soul out with me."

o

**_Maybe I'm the next best thing to happen,  
__All the things we might have been . . ._**

o

"Are you sure you want to do this, Zelda?" Taekorra asks me for the hundredth time.

We—Taekorra, Link, and I—are standing several meters from Fayona, who has her arms crossed looking very impatient.

"Yes." I answer impatiently. All my fear has drained away and all that's left is an angry, throbbing rage. Must be motherly instincts, for the thought of Fayona in trouble makes my fears of Ganondorf look humorous.

I had told Ganondorf I needed to talk to the others before I made any decision. He did not seem to happy about this, but he tolerated it. I don't think he had much a choice. This is probably his last shot at the Triforce.

"I want to fight him," I say again. "I must fight him. I'll never be over what happened to me if I don't get some kind of closure."

"What if _he_ kills _you_?" Taekorra asks concernedly.

"Then it will beover at last." My eyes narrow. "It was _your _meddling that brought me back to hell last time. This time, if I die, I want to stay dead!"

Taekorra doesn't appreciate the accusatory humor.

"Link . . ." I turn to him, the Hero of Time, my torment and true love, feeling none of these things anymore. "I need your help."

He nods.

"Ganondorf is in the Dark Void. That was where I banished him last. I cannot fight him here—I must be there." My voice is calm and grave. "Can you send me there?"

"Yes."

"Then that's it," I decide. "I'll go, find Ganondorf, and get rid of him for good."

"How, may I ask, do you plan to accomplish that?" Taekorra asks sadistically. I can tell he's worried—he always turns cynical when he is most concerned.

I pull the mirror from my pocket. "I told you, I can seal him in this. And if he proves to strong for me, I know a spell that send us both to the farthest regions of oblivion."

"I'm coming too," he says in a no-argument tone.

I cross my arms and counter, "No, you aren't."

"Why not?" he demands, facing me.

"What help could you possibly be? This is between me and Ganondorf—it has nothing to do with you. I need to settle this on my own."

His eyes narrow. "I could probably do more good than you."

"I doubt it, and even if I did believe it, I still wouldn't let you. This is my fight and my fight alone," I say, ending the conversation. I turn back to Link. "Help me."

There's no argument on his part. If I want to die, what reason does he have to stop me? He closes his eyes and holds out the Master Sword, both hands gripped tightly at the hilt, the razor point just touching the dusty ground. Slowly, a pale blue glow spreads from the end of the blade to the tip. I can hear the power of Time resonating within it. Without opening his eyes, Link raises the sword and points the tip directly at my heart. He murmurs a few words in Ancient Hylian and everything goes black.

o

**_Maybe I'm the next best thing to happen,  
__All the things we might have been . . ._**

o

I spin dizzyingly in wild, tight circles, spiraling out of control from Hyrule to the Dark Void. I can do nothing except pray and try to keep my stomach down. Finally, after what seems like eternity, I feel my feet tip out from under me and hit something solid.

For a minute, I think I'm standing upside down. Didn't I just flip over? I open one eye and find everything is right-side up. I open the other and take a good look at my surroundings. The Dark Void doesn't look like anything. All I can see is blackness, dusted with tiny stars, like I'm in space. I look down at my feet and find I'm not standing on solid ground like I thought, but nothing.

"Zelda . . ."

Ganondorf's voice comes from everywhere and nowhere, echoing around me as if I were in a tiny room. Suddenly, he appears before me, looking just the way I remember him.

He folds his arms thoughtfully, shifting his weight to one leg. "I never thought _you _of all people would come willingly to my humble abode."

I put my hands on my hips and glower. "Certainly didn't expect it, did you?"

"Now that you mention it, I didn't."He shrugs. "But that's life for you—full of unexpected little twists."

I pick up on the hidden message without trouble. Link, Taekorra, Fayona, all strange twists of Fate thrown into my life. Link—who turned out to be the traitor I never thought he could be, Taekorra—whose true intentions still seem unclear to me, and Fayona—the only real pleasure in my life, brought into it by a mistake.

"Like this."

"Yes . . ." Ganondorf rubs his chin. "Speaking of this, what _are _you doing here?" I can't tell if he's sincere or not.

"You have something that belongs to me."

He smiles. "Oh, that's right, I do." He snaps his fingers and Fayona appears, dangling in midair like a limp doll.

"Fayona!" I shout. I lunge for her, but just before my fingers can touch her pale skin, she disappears, and I fall into Ganondorf.

He snickers twistedly, looking down at me. I push myself off and back away slowly. "Zelda, I didn't know you still felt that way," he jeers with a wry smile. "Why, I'd have done this ages ago if I had."

"Damn you," I mutter under my breath. "I wish you would just fucking die."

"Die?"He can hear me. "Dear, that's harsh."

I fold my arms impatiently. "Harsh? Ha! That has to be the most foolish thing I've ever heard."

"I suspect you came here to kill me then," Ganondorf says idly. We could be having tea for how he's taking this.

"No, I haven't."

Ganondorf raises an eyebrow. I can see my statement has taken him by surprise. _Now's my chance—I have him off guard. _

"Have you ever heard of a fate worse than death?" I ask casually. My left hand discreetly moves toward my pocket and the mirror.

"Fate worse than death?" Ganondorf looks slightly amused. "Such as?"

In that moment, we both act. I whip the mirror out of my pocket and thrust it outward, the reflective surface aimed at Ganondorf. The King of Evil raises his hands above his head and yells a few strange words, gathering black lightning between his palms.

"_Epmreusmnitn lautt_!" I scream.

"_Phyráes fu Ruiwpe_!" Ganondorf cries simultaneously. What happened next will amaze me forever.

Ganondorf's sparking curse crackles and rockets from his hands. I close my eyes and shrink away somewhat, but keep the mirror erect. The blast crashes, not into me, but the smooth surface of the mirror, creating a shock that reverberates throughout my entire body down to the bone. Instead of just disappearing like I expect, it ricochets off, and shoots straight back at its creator.

Ganondorf, taken completely by surprise, is struck with full force at the center of his chest. The power rushes through his body and he freezes, paralyzed from the shock waves. It's my moment.

I straighten and scream, "_Epmreusmnitn lautt_! _Epmreusmnitn lautt_!"

A bolt of white light erupts from the mirror's surface, shooting directly to my stunned adversary. Ganondorf can't even move to scream as the light hits him. The bolt becomes a beam, shooting from the mirror, then changing and becoming black, reversing on itself and coming back to me. The black light filters into the mirror with a whistle and is gone, Ganondorf with it.

I stand, shocked for a moment, then lower the mirror and stare at it. It looks just the same as it did the first time I picked it up, crystal clear and chipped in one corner. But when I tilt it to a certain angle, I see not my reflection staring out at me, but the image of Ganondorf, trapped inside.

The swirling whirls of Time's power pull me from the Dark Void and I find myself back in Rikern, standing in the road as if I'd never left, between Taekorra and Link. Over Link's shoulder, I see Fayona collapse in a heap. I shove the hero aside and dive for my daughter.

"Fayona . . .?" I ask softly. "Faye . . .?"

Her ruby eyes slowly flutter open and I see they are filled with Ganondorf's evil no longer. "Mama?"

"Oh, Faye!" I hug her to my chest tightly. Tears flow freely down my cheeks. "Oh, Faye!"

Behind me I hear footsteps and turn to see Taekorra coming slowly to me. "You did it . . .?"

His words are sincere. They say everything I need to know. Taekorra never has been, never was, and never will be, loyal to Ganondorf. He truly loves me. I look behind him and see Link, but nothing happens. No fluttering of my heart, no sudden fleeting images of him, no sighs of longing.

I turn back to Taekorra and draw in a sharp breath. In his sparkling eyes I can see the things I always wanted from Link. Love, loyalty, and undying desire. For me. I feel myself swoon and I pull him with one arm into a passionate kiss. "I love you," I whisper in his ear.

Taekorra leans back with mixed feelings of shock, relief, and supreme joy spreading across his face. "What did you do?" he manages to ask. Clearly, my sudden change has taken him as much by surprise as it did me.

"I imprisoned him," I reply, pulling the crystal mirror from my pocket. Dusty light catches it and I can see Ganondorf. For the first time in my life, his image inspires no fear in me. I have fought and beaten him. He has no hold over me anymore.

"He'll be in there for all of time, leering out at me," I say, mostly to myself, "but this time, I have the last laugh."

o

**_Maybe I'm the next best thing to happen,  
__All the things we might have been . . ._**

o

**THE END.**

o


End file.
